MBUK is available as part of a MBW+ subscription \u2013 details through here.<\/a><\/p>\n
MBW Views is a series of exclusive op\/eds from eminent music industry people\u2026 with something to say. The following op\/ed comes from Dr. Charlie Howard, founder of Xception, a company specialising in providing mental health support to people in the public eye, reviews where the music industry is at in terms of supporting artists \u2013 and outlines how far it has to go\u2026<\/p>\n
In recent years, the music industry has made real progress in acknowledging mental health as an issue worth taking seriously.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s been more open conversation, more honesty from artists, and more organisations offering support. But when it comes to how we build artist careers \u2013 the structures, timelines, and expectations we set from day one \u2013 mental health still feels like something we add in later, once things start to crack.<\/p>\n
Xception has been working with music artists, and the teams around them, for more than six years, providing flexible, confidential mental health support to people in the public eye.<\/p>\n
What we see, over and again, is that by the time someone seeks help, they\u2019ve often been struggling for a while. And by then it\u2019s not just about navigating one-off challenges \u2013 it\u2019s about unpicking an entire system of pressure they\u2019ve been operating under, often since the start of their careers.\u00a0 And it raises a difficult question: why isn\u2019t mental health the first thing we think about when setting someone up for success?<\/p>\n
We\u2019re not suggesting that mental health replaces ambition or strategy. But if we want longevity, real artistry and people who can thrive across unpredictable and often relentless careers, then mental health has to be stitched into every part of the process \u2013 not dropped in later like a wellness initiative.<\/p>\n
This isn\u2019t only about artists either.\u00a0 Managers, publicists, label teams, assistants, tour crews \u2013 they all carry a significant emotional load. In many cases, these are the people expected to be the first responders to an artist\u2019s distress, often without any formal training or support themselves. We need to broaden the conversation beyond the individual at the front of the stage and consider the wider ecosystem surrounding them.<\/p>\n
The pace of the industry makes it hard to slow down. There\u2019s always the next release, the next show, the next opportunity. But in our work, we\u2019ve learned that taking the time to check in \u2013 properly, not performatively \u2013 doesn\u2019t slow artists down, it sustains them. When mental health is embedded early, careers don\u2019t just survive; they evolve more steadily and with greater clarity. Artists make better decisions. Teams feel more grounded.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s more space for creativity, and less risk of burnout becoming the painful price of success.\u00a0 Of course, there\u2019s no one-size-fits-all approach. That\u2019s why flexibility is so important; support that moves with people, adapts to the pressures of touring, launches, and downtime alike.<\/p>\n
A therapist on the road, check-ins between cities, long-term support during off-cycles: all of these things help people stay connected to themselves, even when everything else is moving fast.<\/p>\n
And it\u2019s not just about reacting to crises, it\u2019s about creating an environment where those crises are less likely to occur. Proactive mental health integration helps reduce attrition, substance dependency and the long-term psychological toll that constant visibility and performance can bring.<\/p>\n
It allows artists to define success on their own terms, instead of being forced to conform to an outdated blueprint that often rewards overwork and emotional suppression.\u00a0 We\u2019ve seen what happens when support is missing, and we\u2019ve also seen what\u2019s possible when it\u2019s in place from the beginning.<\/p>\n
\u201cMental health has to be stitched into every part of the process, not dropped in later.\u201d<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a lot of energy in the industry right now to do things differently. We hear it from labels who want to build sustainable rosters, from managers looking for tools to support their clients more holistically and from artists who are no longer willing to sacrifice well-being for visibility.<\/p>\n
In partnership with major labels and talent management companies, we\u2019ve piloted a groundbreaking approach for artists which has seen exceptional results and really highlighted the need for this type of support at every stage of an artist\u2019s career \u2013 from developing acts to fully fledged legends.\u00a0 This momentum represents a cultural shift that can\u2019t be underestimated.<\/p>\n
Just as marketing, branding and production are treated as fundamental pillars of an artist\u2019s journey, so too must be the systems that support their mental and emotional resilience. By integrating support into contracts, touring logistics and even release calendars, we build a structure that isn\u2019t just reactive, but genuinely preventative.<\/p>\n
The opportunity now is to act. And perhaps the most transformative shift we can make is in how we think about mental health \u2013 not as a box to tick, not as something that kicks in only when there\u2019s a problem, but as a core part of what makes a career truly viable. It\u2019s time to move from awareness to infrastructure. We need to embed support into the fabric of how we build careers.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not about perfection; it\u2019s about prevention. It\u2019s about building environments where people can keep showing up \u2013 as artists, yes, but also as whole human beings.<\/p>\n
If we truly care about longevity, about artistry, about doing things differently, then mental health can\u2019t be an afterthought. It has to be the foundation.\u00a0 If we want to build careers that last, we have to start there.<\/p>\n
MBUK is available as part of a MBW+ subscription \u2013 details through here.<\/a><\/p>\nThis article originally appeared in the latest (Q2 2025) issue of MBW\u2019s premium quarterly publication, Music Business UK, which is out now.<\/a><\/p>\n