‘When I was younger, I thought the anxiety would go away, but it’s who I am’: Mabel reveals she feels liberated after accepting that she’ll always struggle with her mental health
Her music career has grown from strength over the past few years, culminating in her scooping the coveted British Female Solo Artist prize at this year’s BRIT Awards.
But beneath all her success and adulation, singer Mabel has been battling severe anxiety and depression since her childhood, something which she now accepts will always be part of her.
In a candid new interview with GQ, the Don’t Call Me Up hitmaker, 24, revealed that she feels liberated after finally learning to embrace her mental health struggles.
Candid: Mabel, 24, has revealed that she accepts that she’ll always struggle with her mental health after battling severe anxiety and depression since her childhood
Following a thrilling start to the year which saw her win big at the BRITS and embark on her High Expectations tour, things changed dramatically when the UK was plunged into lockdown amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The day before lockdown was announced, Mabel moved in with her parents – record producer father Cameron McVey and singer mother Neneh Cherry – with the transition back into family life being exactly what she needed.
Opening up about her initial fears of moving back into the family home and a slower pace of life, Mabel said: ‘I just thought it was going to be too hard, when I already have a lot of struggles with my mental health.’
However, it appeared that going from a popular pop star to just a daughter helped the star be more grounded, with her parents helping her reevaluate and even embrace her anxiety.
Acceptance: In a candid new interview with GQ , the Don’t Call Me Up hitmaker, 24, revealed that she feels liberated after finally learning to embrace her mental health struggles
The chart-topper went on to explain that she’s now come to the liberating realisation that mental health will always be part of her life, after previously thinking that she needed to change herself to alleviate it.
She explained: ‘When I was younger, I always felt like maybe if I had a boyfriend, or if I dyed my hair this colour, or if I had a No1 album, then the anxiety would go away, but it’s who I am and I actually love that.’
The star went on to say that she’s learned that being confident in who she really is deep down is what’s important and which helps keeps her in control of her anxiety.
Freedom: Mabel explained she’s come to the liberating realisation that mental health will always be part of her life, after thinking that she needed to change herself to alleviate it
She said: ‘I had this misconception that confidence was becoming the person that I wanted to be and I know now that confidence is actually being 100 per cent OK with who you really are. Now, I can hear the little voice in my head and I’m just like, “OK, you’re there, but I’m not going to believe everything you say.”‘
Mabel has previously opened up to GQ, about her childhood anxiety and how writing songs helped her to deal with her issues.
She told the publication: ‘I would have bad panic attacks. I just couldn’t come to terms with the fact that my parents didn’t know the answers to some things.
‘They would tell me that a lot of creative people suffer from things like anxiety, that it was completely normal and that I should write stuff down.’
The singer has high ambitions for her musical career and told the publication she hopes to become an international star.
She said: I’ve always wanted to win Grammys, tour the world and have global success.’
Mabel began her career in 2015 with the release of her single Know Me Better and found mainstream success two years later with the song Finders Keepers featuring rapper Kojo Funds.
Read the full feature in the November issue of GQ available via digital download and on newsstands Friday 2 October
Honest: ‘I had this misconception that confidence was becoming the person that I wanted to be and I know now that confidence is actually being 100 per cent OK with who you really are’