Anyone But Me

Album: single release only (2020)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Born in South London to a Bangladeshi mother and Irish father, Joy Crookes first gained interest in music after attending a jazz and blues workshop. After teaching herself how to play guitar, piano and bass, Crookes began uploading songs to YouTube in her early teens. Things really exploded in 2017 when she performed her track "Mother May I Sleep With Danger" along with her guitar player Charles J Monneraud on the YouTube channel Colors. She released "Anyone But Me," a song about her battles with mental health, on April 10, 2020.
  • Crookes has suffered from mental health issues since before she was a teenager.

    Seven years strong with my therapy
    Making mosaics of my memories


    Said Crookes to the BBC: "It's something I've battled with for a long time. I remember when I was 12, I rang up the NHS and said, 'I can't get out of bed. I'm not ill, I haven't got a cold, I just can't get out of bed.' And the guy on the other end of the phone said, 'Ah, have you heard of depression?'"
  • Crookes often feels like there's another person living in her head and finds comfort and release in music and in having conversations with the people around her. "I am still learning how to completely articulate what goes on in my mind," she said. "Being able to have these important conversations has been challenging and I guess that's why I always turned to music."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Al Kooper

Al KooperSongwriter Interviews

Kooper produced Lynyrd Skynyrd, played with Dylan and the Stones, and formed BS&T.

Oliver Leiber

Oliver LeiberSongwriter Interviews

Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.

Harry Shearer

Harry ShearerSongwriter Interviews

Harry is Derek Smalls in Spinal Tap, Mark Shubb in The Folksmen, and Mr. Burns on The Simpsons.

Don Dokken

Don DokkenSongwriter Interviews

Dokken frontman Don Dokken explains what broke up the band at the height of their success in the late '80s, and talks about the botched surgery that paralyzed his right arm.

Gene Simmons of Kiss

Gene Simmons of KissSongwriter Interviews

The Kiss rocker covers a lot of ground in this interview, including why there are no Kiss collaborations, and why the Rock Hall has "become a sham."

Meshell Ndegeocello

Meshell NdegeocelloSongwriter Interviews

Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.