About the project
140 PEOPLE SING IN SUPPORT OF MENTAL HEALTH!
“BREATHE!” is an international, community project, joining 140 singers from Los Angeles and Montreal in a choir-driven song & video. Its mission is to bring awareness to, and raise funds in support of mental health, both in the United States and Canada, as well as around the globe.
The lyrics to the song highlight the importance of breathing as a tool to help regulate our feelings of isolation, stress, anxiety, and fear. We hope it can serve as a helpful reminder that sometimes, what we really need to do is just stop and breathe.
Participants in "Breathe!" include Grammy winners and nominees, Juno winners and nominees, artists, musicians, couples, families, comedians, singers from such productions as “The Voice” and “Cirque du Soleil”, and actors from popular TV shows like "Full House" and "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina".
The creators
UNITING MUSIC WITH ACTIVISM
"Breathe!" was created by Celleste and Eric, two artists originally from Montreal who made the jump to Los Angeles in 2017. With music at the heart of their careers, the pair always knew they wanted to combine their creative abilities with meaningful social activism.
In 2018, after partnering with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles on a song and video to help raise funds for rebuilding efforts after California wildfires and natural disasters, Celleste and Eric were determined to use their music as a force of activism once again. Drawing on their own experiences with mental health challenges, as well as those of friends, family, and the community around them, they embarked on creating an international project that would simultaneously lift spirits, and raise both awareness and funds, in support of mental health. The result of that effort is "Breathe!".
Celleste is a singer and songwriter, based in Los Angeles. She's also an accomplished dancer, actress, model, and film director and editor, shooting and directing her own music videos. To learn more about Celleste, visit celleste.com.
Eric is a singer, songwriter, film and television composer, and music producer based in Los Angeles. He's also the crossword contributor to the Malibu Times Magazine in Malibu, CA. To learn more about Eric, visit ericdick.com.
The foundations
HIGHLIGHTING LOS ANGELES AND MONTREAL
So many foundations around the globe are doing exceptional work to raise awareness, and funds in support of mental health. With "Breathe!", we decided to highlight two of those foundations, one in each city. Please visit them online and donate generously.
IN LOS ANGELES: teenlineonline.org
Teen Line is a confidential hotline for teenagers which operates every evening from 6:00pm to 10:00pm PST. You can call, text or email. They also offers message boards, resources and information. The hotline receives over 21,100 calls, texts, and emails each year, and more than 20,500 attend their outreaches to schools & community groups annually. Their website receives more than 1.3 million visitors annually from all over the world, and they are certified by the American Association of Suicidology. Their Teen Suicide Prevention Training has been a regular part of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Juvenile Procedures School curriculum since 1996.
The Teen Line volunteers who answer the calls, emails and texts are Southern California teenagers who have received specialized training. Issues that teenagers are dealing with include abuse, depression, divorce, bullying, anxiety, gangs, gender identity, homelessness, pregnancy, relationships, sexuality, violence, substance abuse, self harm, and suicide.
A donation to Teen Line directly supports their crisis hotline, outreach services, and suicide prevention program.
IN MONTREAL: jfkfoundation.ca
To date, Just for Kids (JFK) has purchased over $11.5 million of high-priority medical equipment for the Montreal Children’s Hospital, and has helped over 1,500 healthcare professionals improve patient care.
As part of their 2020 campaign, JFK is committed to improving mental health resources at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. For the next three years they will be providing a Social Worker specializing in Mental Health for the Emergency Room, who will play a critical role in responding to and treating vulnerable patients, and act as a facilitator between the medical team and the child’s family.
Also as part of their campaign this year, JFK will be purchasing a Difficult Airway Cart, a vital life-saving piece of equipment, as well as subsidizing “The JFK Sibling Park” at the hospital, to provide siblings of patients in acute care a safe haven where they can play freely, enjoy arts and crafts and make new friends, all with professional childcare workers by their side and without the the financial stress of extra childcare costs.
A donation to Just for Kids Foundation directly supports these 2020 campaign initiatives.
Get in touch
Have any thoughts or ideas we should know about?
Want to use “Breathe!” to help your foundation or event?
Contact us anytime, we’d love to hear from you.
For general inquiries:
breathe@mightymusic.ca
For press inquiries:
press@mightymusic.ca
"YOU ARE SO BRAVE AND QUIET, I FORGET YOU ARE SUFFERING."
ERNEST HEMINGWAY