Juliana Hatfield Claims Her Severe Depression Was Covered Up
90s songstress, Juliana Hatfield, bravely came out to the press and claimed that her bouts with depression were covered up by record company PR. For instance, when she canceled plans for a European tour in the mid-90s, the spin was that she was simply suffering from exhaustion. In reality, Hatfield claims that her depression was severe:
“… so unbearable that I was going to jump out of a window to get away from it . . . I needed to check myself into some kind of psychiatric-treatment facility.”
She goes on to say, in the NY Post:
“In the eyes of the music business and media machine, it’s better, saner, for a girl to work, work, work and promote, promote, promote until she breaks down or blows out and is hauled away on a stretcher than for her to walk away on purpose when she still has some power to decide for herself what is right. Severe depression was my problem . . . Why couldn’t they have called it what it was? . . . ‘Severe depression’ sounds so much more badass than ‘nervous exhaustion.’ “
July 22, 2008 at 11:14 pm
That’s a shame. She’s such a great songwriter. I’ve always loved her songs “My Sister” and “Universal Heartbeat.” I hope she’s better now.
She recently had a book published that is titled When I Grow Up.
July 23, 2008 at 7:34 am
Alanis walked away when she felt like it. And now she’s back. Don’t blame the record company.
May 16, 2009 at 9:51 am
You’ve obviously never dealt with depression.
May 16, 2009 at 3:32 pm
Thank you for underscoring my point, Salguine! The cause of her misery was depression, not the record company.
July 23, 2008 at 7:38 am
…and nobody was better than Julianna in terms of 90s whiny, white-chick rock!
February 25, 2009 at 10:17 am
She was awesome, there’s no doubt about that, but those two statements above are completely contradictory. Did they or didn’t they want the public to know she was loopy?
February 25, 2009 at 5:09 pm
The way I read it, they didn’t want fans to know that she was suffering from depression for the fear that some fans might lose interest. But they needed to give some kind of explanation for so many concerts being canceled
May 16, 2009 at 11:23 am
Amen, Salguine
July 30, 2009 at 10:41 pm
[...] (Hat tip: Powerline A.D.) [...]
December 2, 2010 at 9:47 am
A. Depression needn’t be shameful (I know the above writer didn’t mean it that way.) I’m comfortable discussing mine with anyone.
B. Although depression and its concomitant peculiar anxieties can be so horrifying that I’d give an arm to be rid of it, it does bring with itself ultra-rich and everlasting gifts.