“Troubled” is the lead single created by iconic Botswana artists teaming up with a Danish based production team for a new project exploring mental health in the creative industries. Forming Part of the Heartstrings & Heartbeats campaign, the song Troubled features the popular stars Solly Sebotso and Mpho Sebina from Botswana and is written by Danish star Spliff, produced by Kiz Keyz.
Troubled fuses Botswana’s four string Guitar (a local traditional folk music) and Danish Electronic Dance Music in a cool, contemporary style. The goal is to stimulate public discourse on mental health among creative people as well as the use of music as an effective public engagement tool.
The single releases to the South African market from this week.
Heartstrings & Heartbeats is a two year multi-stakeholder public engagement project aimed at exploring the science behind mental health issues among creatives while placing communities and those who are impacted and inflicted as drivers of their own solutions. It will promote and facilitate diversity of people and ideas about mental health science and creative works between the global north and South.
Stay up to date with their latest updates here –https://m.facebook.com/HeartstringsAndHeartbeat
The first phase of the project is meant to foster cultural relations between Danish and Botswana music artists as well as trigger dialogue on issues of mental health among creative people. This will culminate in a campaign to raise awareness among the public and inform research.
The second phase of the project will bring together stakeholders to co-create solutions that utilises action research to explore mental health among creative people. This global public engagement project seeks to create knowledge exchange between scientists in the global north, (starting with Denmark) and global south (starting with Botswana) including collaboration on projects emerging from explorations of mental health issues affecting creative people.
In addition to the support and collaboration from various stakeholders, Wellcome Trust (Funder), University of Botswana’s Faculty of Medicine, Infers Group, All Things Musical, Oceans, Industry Media, Duma FM and The Dialogue Group, it is hoped that stakeholders will be attracted to invest in the future opportunities of the project.
“Depression and anxiety disorders cost the global economy $1 trillion every year in lost productivity – and take a terrible human toll. How can we build healthier workplaces that support mental health?“, World Economic Forum.