World Mental Health Day, observed today, offers people everywhere a chance to reflect, discuss, and destigmatize conversations around mental health and well-being.
Mental health has been a priority here at Spotify since 2018, when we launched our Heart & Soul initiative. For us, mental health is a state of well-being where we are able to cope with the daily stresses of life, function productively, and make meaningful contributions. Heart & Soul’s focus is to create an open and caring environment around mental health issues, an environment where we can do our best work and belong. Heart & Soul aims to raise awareness, enable support, and normalize the conversation to reduce mental health stigma at work.
We also know our platform can provide a place for listeners to find moments of inspiration and healing through music, podcasts, and audiobooks. We are always seeking new methods to leverage the power of Spotify to break down stigma and raise awareness around mental health and well-being. This World Mental Health Day, we’re encouraging people around the world to take a beat.
Go ahead and ‘Take a Beat’
On Spotify, listeners can find our Take a Beat global content hub, which includes a collection of podcasts and playlists that promote mental health and wellness. Whether you’re looking to find audio around relaxing, resting, or releasing good vibes, the curations give listeners a refuge from the intensity of our noisy world and provide a chance for them to tune into themselves.
Don’t forget that ‘Our Minds Matter’
Earlier this year, we announced the launch of a new partnership with UNICEF to support the mental health of young people. Focusing on those affected by the ongoing war in Ukraine, we plan to scale this initiative over the next two years to aid in other emergency and nonemergency scenarios.
As a part of this partnership, we created the Our Minds Matter content hub on Spotify. This destination is designed to support those in Ukraine and Poland, in particular, and also features music and talk playlists to support sleep, study, and relaxation. We also cocreated On My Mind with UNICEF, a podcast available in multiple languages, including Ukrainian, Polish, and English, that provides practical, evidence-based mental health resources.
Making moves with Nike
In the U.K., we’ve taken on a different challenge: partnering with Nike to inspire girls to get more active using the power of music—and in turn, improve their mental well-being—through the Make Moves Fund. Together, we’ll invest in community initiatives that inspire girls to get moving while leveraging the power of music to improve their well-being. With British girl group FLO serving as the fund’s ambassador, we’re hoping to create lasting change by awarding multiple £20K grants to U.K.-based community organizations that propose pioneering and girl-first programs that use music and movement to inspire girls to get active.
Mental health starts with ‘Heart and Soul’
This World Mental Health Day at Spotify, we’re acknowledging the occasion a little differently. We’re inviting teams to come together to participate in a mental health–centered workshop led by their managers.
This will bring our teams together in new ways—all with the goal of reducing stigma and encouraging conversations about mental health.
We want to ensure teammates are genuinely looking out for one another, and to do that, it’s important for us to build emotionally aware teams. Creating healthy and thriving workplaces starts with our leadership. When leaders prioritize employee well-being and lead with compassion, the well-being of the collective is elevated.
At Spotify, it’s important for us to come together to cultivate collective care.
Whether within our company or on our global platform, we are finding new ways to highlight the importance of mental health and well-being. If you’re looking to kickstart your mental wellness journey with podcasts, mindful meditation suggestions, or relaxation playlists, check out our Take A Beat destination for everything you need.
Looking to hear more about experiences of mental health within the artist community? Catch this special episode of Best Advice to hear from Hayley Kiyoko, Troye Sivan, Big Freedia, Laura Jane Grace, Princess Nokia, Lykke Li, Rina Sawayama and more.
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