Early career musicians struggling with mental wellbeing

Poor mental wellbeing affects 30% of UK musicians, rising to 41% for music students, according to a Help Musicians and the Musicians’ Union report.

It found that musicians experiencing negative mental wellbeing were also twice as likely to say it was doubtful that they would be working in music in one to five years. 

The Musicians’ Mental Wellbeing Report provides a detailed breakdown of broader findings published in September’s UK Musicians’ Census, which surveyed 5,867 musicians. 

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• Third of UK musicians earn less than £14k 
• Over 80% of UK musicians report loss of earnings due to Brexit

The latest findings indicate that the proportion of musicians reporting low mental wellbeing declines the longer they have been working in the industry, suggesting that they are leaving the industry over time. 

While 34% of musicians with one to five years’ experience report low mental wellbeing, this figure drops to 20% of those with more than 30 years’ experience. 

Those just starting in the music industry reported the highest rates of negative mental wellbeing, with 41% of students and those not yet working as a musician affected. The report calls for dedicated mental health support for those in the early stages of their careers.

'A difficult life'

The data showed that musicians in marginalised groups were also more likely to experience struggles with their mental health. Trans musicians were more than twice as likely to experience low mental wellbeing (63%) compared with those musicians whose gender identity was the same as their sex assigned at birth (30%). 

Half of all disabled musicians reported low mental wellbeing, compared with just one-fifth of those who did not have a disability, and 80% of musicians who reported extremely negative physical wellbeing also reported low mental wellbeing.

One respondent, aged 27 from London, said: “If you struggle from physical and mental health issues, as I do, being expected to create full-time while working demanding part-time jobs is physically exhausting and destructive. 

“I accept the struggled balance that will be normal for the next five years. This is why most people quit; it is so much to expect of a person and a very particular and difficult life to lead.”

Robust mental health support

Regional differences showed that musicians in England were least likely to report low mental wellbeing (30%) compared with respondents in other nations: Wales (37%), Northern Ireland (34%) and Scotland (33%).

Within England, the North East region had the highest proportion of respondents with negative mental wellbeing (38%), and the East Midlands had the least musicians reporting negative mental wellbeing (25%).

Mental wellbeing also differed considerably by position and genre, with isolated high-pressure such as roles live and studio sound engineers (38%) and producers (37%) the most likely to report low mental health.

Musicians working in dance music (35%), rock and alternative (33%) and UK rap (33%) genres had higher rates of low mental wellbeing compared with classical (29%), musical theatre (30%) and jazz/blues (30%)

The report noted that the findings starkly contrast the significant benefit to mental health that music can bring to listeners, calling for more robust mental health support to help musicians develop more sustainable careers. 

Sarah Woods, Chief Executive of Help Musicians and its sister charity Music Minds Matter, commented: “We see firsthand the impact that low mental wellbeing can have on the lives and careers of UK musicians and those who work around them. Insights from the Musicians’ Census show the need to build positive mental wellbeing for all who work in music but especially with the future generation, so we can prevent crises before they happen."