The Music Industry Needs to Protect Its Artists — Before It’s Too Late

The music industry is broken from the inside out. We glorify the broken, the addicted, the burnt-out — and then we’re ‘shocked’ when another artist falls apart or disappears altogether, or tragically dies.

The reality is, we’ve built an industry where the pressure to perform is relentless, where success comes at the expense of mental health, and where drug addiction and alcohol abuse are seen as just part of the game. It’s not just tragic — it’s systematic abuse. And we need to start calling it what it is.

Take what recently happened to Chappell Roan. She did something most artists can’t even dream of: she prioritised her mental health. She made the tough but vital decision to cancel shows for her own well-being. Instead of being supported for making this brave choice, she was vilified. The backlash was disgusting and telling of how toxic this industry has become. And Chappell’s experience is far from unique.

But it’s not just about individual artists and their struggles — it’s about how the industry itself is set up to perpetuate toxic behaviours, particularly among men. This is an industry drenched in misogyny, where men are taught that their worth is tied to their dominance, their ability to outlast, outperform, and out-drink everyone around them. They see toxic masculinity celebrated and rewarded at every turn, so they adopt it, they embody it, and they pass it on.

Is it any wonder that so many men in the music world display toxic behaviour patterns? From abusive relationships to self-destructive habits, they’re following a script that the industry has handed them. And we all lose. They lose themselves in the process, and everyone around them — particularly women — becomes collateral damage. Men are drowning in this toxic culture, and the silence around their mental health needs is deafening.

We can’t just slap a mental health awareness sticker on this issue and call it a day. We need real standards, safeguards, and protections in place for artists, especially when it comes to mental health. Artists should have access to mental health services as easily as they have access to a microphone. We need safe spaces where men can talk openly about their struggles without being labelled weak, and where women don’t have to fear violence, abuse, or exploitation at the hands of the men they work alongside.

There are some new initiatives that give me hope. Music Support is doing incredible work in offering mental health services for those working in the industry, and organisations like Minding Creative Minds in Ireland, and Help Musicians UK are stepping up with support for artists in crisis. Similarly, Keychange and my team in Why Not Her? is pushing for gender balance, encouraging a healthier, more diverse industry. But let’s not fool ourselves into thinking that we’ve solved the problem. These initiatives are brilliant, and they’re vital steps forward, but they are still just drops in an ocean of toxic culture that we need to dismantle from the ground up.

We still have a long way to go. Every artist, every manager, every person working in this industry needs to understand that mental health comes first. That safeguarding comes first. And that we cannot keep letting this toxic culture define what it means to be successful. It is not enough to simply react when someone like Chappell Roan makes headlines for putting her health first. We need to create an environment where every artist feels supported in doing the same, without fear of judgement or backlash.

It’s time to stop pretending the industry is one big party, where destruction is part of the allure. It’s time to stop turning a blind eye to the misogyny, the violence, and the pressure to push yourself beyond the limits of your mental and physical health. The music industry can be a place of healing, of support, and of creativity. But only if we make that choice — and make it now.

We need to dismantle the toxic structures that keep artists trapped in cycles of self-destruction. We need to create real, accessible mental health services, safe spaces, and gender equality initiatives that are as embedded in the fabric of the industry as the music itself. Anything less is a failure. It’s not just about saving careers — it’s about saving lives. Enough is enough. The next artist we lose shouldn’t be another name we mourn — it should be the moment we finally stand up and demand real change.