This week's emo article comes to you via The Daily Telegraph, and from a country where two girls -- who were fans of "emo" music -- committed suicide earlier this week. Shockingly -- and thankfully -- the article doesn't blame the music.
"Commentators have referred to Jodie and Stephanie's cyber activities and their love of emo music. Some ill-informed, poorly researched and deliberately stupid TV and radio types have blamed a contemporary rock sub-genre for the girls' decision to end their lives."
Those are harsh words, but I like where this is headed.
The article notes the actual origins of emo -- American hardcore/punk music, as opposed to goth, noting the only real link between emo and goth is "both like to wear dark eyeliner." I'll disagree here, as I do think a lot of lyrical content overlaps between goth and emo music as well, but even stating that case in no way implicates either type of music in suicide or murder.
Smartly so, the article points out the lyrics to My Chemical Romance's "Famous Last Words" -- which may well be one of the least "go kill yourself" songs ever written. A song with a sing-along chant, "I am not afraid to keep on living, I am not afraid to walk this world alone" is pretty much the last song you can pin someone killing themselves on. Hell, it has probably saved a life or two.
Here's the most striking part of the article, and something everyone who loves to blame music for tragedies should have to write 100 times a day until it sinks in:
"But if emo, or any other genre, was truly responsible for provoking suicide, consider this: There would be many, many more deaths."
And that's the truth.
I'm glad to see more articles like this showing up. With the recent campaigns to raise awarness about mental health issues featuring Pete Wentz and Max Bemis, as well as tours like the Take Action tour -- rasing money for suicide prevention groups, maybe people will finally get a clue and stop pointing fingers at a subgenre of rock music.
I doubt it, but at least some of us are trying to make this happen. Suicide is a tragedy that hurts the people left behind. Depression and mental illness hurts the people afflicted, as well as the people in their lives. And they're still very much so 'hush-hush' subjects, so people don't speak about them nearly as much as they should.
I guess it's easier to blame "emo" or "metal" or even "rap", but it's never going to find an answer to the problem.
