Why You Should Know To Write Love On Her Arms If You Don't

**Amber, Director of Partnerships at To Write Love on Her Arms, talking to the audience about her experience with mental health as well as how she learned about the organization.**

WORDS AND PHOTOS BY JAZMIN LEMUS

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. From speaking with friends, it feels like mental health has become a subject more people have been open to talking about in recent years, especially with the last couple of years that we have had dealing with Covid-19. Since shows are back in session and have been for almost a year, it felt like it was finally okay to do an in-person event during this month to continue to bring awareness. On Thursday, May 12th, With Others and Nettwerk Music teamed up in support of Mental Health Awareness Month to put on a benefit show for To Write Love on Her Arms. The show featured Andrew McMahon (Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, Jack’s Mannequin, Something Corporate), Emily James, and nobody likes you pat, all of which are part of the Nettwerk Music family.

When I first heard about To Write Love on Her Arms, I was a junior in high school. So it was pretty much around the time it had started, which was in 2006 (I realize I am aging myself here). I learned about TWLOHA all because I saw my favorite bands wearing the OG black (or white) TWLOHA shirt. Some of those bands included Bayside, Paramore, Anberlin, and Switchfoot. I didn’t know what TWLOHA was though. I slowly started to learn what it was all about and was a cause I knew was important to be supportive of! The quick breakdown for anyone who may still not be familiar:

TWLOHA is a non-profit dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicide.
TWLOHA encourages, informs, inspires, and invests directly into treatment and recovery.
Since TWLOHA began in 2006, the organization has donated over $3 million directly into treatment and recovery making it possible to access mental health care when it’s needed the most.

With the help of With Others and Nettwerk Music, fans of the artists that performed at the event were able to add more money to the cause! Yes, it was a show, but at the same time it felt like a community. For those that are fans of Andrew, we are all too familiar with his story and how he started his nonprofit organization, Dear Jack, back in 2006 after he went through his experience with cancer. Was it a surprise for us when we found out he was down to be part of this event? Probably not!

The night started off with the emcee for the night, Tom, welcoming the attendees and talking about what this night was about. He went on to introduce nobody likes you pat, a singer-songwriter from L.A. In between songs, he talked about his experiences with mental health and even went on to talk about a song he wrote about his wife’s experience. His song, “Better Than” is about his wife who was suicidal a few years ago. For anyone that didn’t know of him and this song, we were able to get a glimpse of what this experience was like. That would be the first of some of the stories we would hear on this night. A cool thing about this event is that in between sets, we had some intermissions and it was an awesome opportunity to chat with friends and even make new ones. I know I did! After our first intermission, Emily James went on to perform and she too, talked about her experience with mental health, especially during the lockdown as she performed a song she wrote during that time period titled “What I’ll Remember”. Before Andrew took the stage, we heard from Amber, who is the Director of Partnerships at TWLOHA. She talked about her story, her struggles, how she ended up learning about the organization, and how she ended up working for TWLOHA. She also encouraged us to support the organization in any way we can, whether it’s through word of mouth or donations, for anyone who has the means.

To end the night of music, Andrew went on to perform what was supposed to be about a 40-minute performance, but turned out to be closer to an hour as he went on to chat in between songs about the new music he has been working on and how important it is to support TWLOHA. Some fan favorites we got to hear were of all of his bands, which include Something Corporate and Jack’s Mannequin. We got to hear songs such as “Swim”, “Paper Rain”, “I’m Ready”, and “She Paints Me Blue”, which was requested by a fan! We also got to hear a new song titled “Smoke & Ribbons”. In addition to his music, we also got treated to some covers: Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time” and Empire of the Sun’s “Walking On A Dream”.

I’m not sure if it’s me or if it’s because the last couple of years we have been through, but this night was much needed. I feel the reason is because we are humans and sometimes we need help and it’s okay to ask for it. Although, it isn’t easy to ask for help, sometimes hearing that someone else may be going through something similar, may in a weird way, make you feel better. If you are just learning about TWLOHA or have been trying to figure out how you can help, you can get started at twloha.com. Big thank you to all involved in making the event on May 12th happen. It wasn’t just a show and it wasn’t just an event. It was a time of family bonding with people who may have felt like strangers, but we were there because we care about the music and trying to help others in need.

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