Originating from Dallas, Texas, Caitlin Kelly King is a powerful and moving artist who provides a strong and beautiful message behind every song that she creates. Caitlin uses music as a platform to share her story of her personal struggle with mental health. Caitlin’s goal is to spark awareness of mental health through her music, as well as to unite understanding about it between those who experience it day to day, and those who don’t. Her end goal is to help the people who are struggling to find their way and obtain peace of mind. She has been perfecting her craft since the age of five and began playing the piano at 12. She then joined a music conservatory where she met some of her band members that she still makes music with today.
“Like I Died” is Caitlin’s first single that was released on May 3rd, 2019. The lyrics are extremely raw, real, and honest. In this song Caitlin is very open about her struggle with mental health. In “Like I Died” she sings with grace, “I’m not a very strong person, though I’ve held it together till here, and as these thoughts just worsen, I can’t deny or hide my fear.” Even though she verbally states that she is “not a very strong person” her action of having the strength to talk about and share her experience with depression indicates that she is in fact resilient in her battle. This song is incredibly important because it is diminishing the stigma of mental health, which is much needed in today’s society, and will hopefully encourage others to be open about their experiences too. This song gives comfort to anyone enduring a hardship in life because Caitlin makes you feel as if she is there with you, experiencing a similar situation, and guiding you through it. Please go support Caitlin King and her music to help end the stigma of mental health!
Listen to "Like I Died" here, and don't forget to scroll below for Caitlin's personalized interview!
Thank you for sharing your story Caitlin, it is so moving and powerful. Can you tell our readers more about yourself and your mission?
Of course. I come from a family of people who struggle greatly with mental health issues. My grandmother even described her life as a struggle between her love for her family, her love for her work, and her desire to die. I watched her and many others in my family fight to get through every day, and I really wanted to help them but didn't know how. As I grew older, I started to develop my own demons, and I had to learn how to manage them and keep moving forward in life. I've come to find that the best thing you can do for yourself is to talk to someone who can help, or at least set you up with the right people. It just so happens to be one of the hardest things you can do because it's hard to get the courage to speak about such personal issues, and it's even harder to find receptive people. I feel like if we could get people to come together and share our experiences, we could learn to see mental health issues not as weaknesses, but as obstacles that must be navigated through. Maybe we could also see that it's easier to get through these things together.
Out of all the messages in your song “Like I Died”, what is the most important thing that you want your listeners to take from the song?
The message of this song is kind of a hidden one. “Like I Died” was written to take you to that feeling that most of us spend our lives trying to avoid. So, in a way, it was written to sort of describe the emotions that encompass you when you're in that state of such deep pain. A lot of us try to run from these feelings when they bubble up, but it's important to sit with your pain and really experience the situation because it will make you stronger. The more hidden message is in the line, "nothing is very clear when you're wrapped up in fear." This is something that every human-being has experienced. Sometimes the pain and confusion will immobilize and blind you, but it's really important to try and find a way to separate yourself from the situation and evaluate it. When I ran from my pain, I found it never went away. Instead, it seemed to wait until the most inconvenient time and would come back stronger than ever. I had to find a way to separate myself from the issue and figure out what happened, why it happened, why I feel this way, and what I need to do in order to move on from this moment. Only then was I able to truly move on.
What was the writing process like for “Like I Died”? What were your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?
My writing process has always been kind of weird. The really good songs come easily, and the bad ones are just painful to write. This one was an easy write. I started writing the lyrics and it just kind of felt like writing a conversation with a person that I couldn't find the strength to have. It was really therapeutic for me to get these emotions out of my head, and to turn all the ugly pain into a really pretty song.
Who are your biggest musical inspirations?
My biggest musical inspirations are some of the greats like Radiohead, Jeff Buckley, and Elliott Smith.
What is your next project for 2019?
My band has started recording our first album! Stay tuned for updates on that at @caitlin.kelly.king on Instagram, and Caitlin Kelly King on Facebook and Spotify.