How Hitmaker Lewis Capaldi is Propelled by the Power of Therapy
Categoria: Musica
From “Someone You Loved” to self-care: Lewis Capaldi opens up about fame, therapy and the power of checking back in
Por Billboard | 08/07/2026
In his years as a chart-topper, the Scottish singer-songwriter Lewis Capaldi has enjoyed success on the Billboard charts with a flock of tender songs which has the star wearing his heart on his sleeve. His 2019 breakout “Someone You Loved” became his first No. 1, while singles “Before You Go” and “Forget Me” also turned into Hot 100 hits. Each heartrending track focuses on themes exploring the ups and downs of love, life and heartbreak; sung in a style only Capaldi could express. On the outside, Capaldi is living his dreams. He has hits plastering the radio, is headlining global tours and, most recently, starred in the video for Taylor Swift’s peppy “Opalite.” But despite his success and star status, the 29 year-old is open about his struggles with mental health, with Capaldi noting that caring for yourself is an ongoing process. As a result, Capaldi has partnered with the world’s largest online therapy platform BetterHelp on a new campaign aptly dubbed Check Back In. “It’s very easy when I start to feel good to almost assume I’m in the clear,” Capaldi said in a statement about the partnership. “But it’s almost like doing it (therapy) on the days where you feel good is more important than doing it on the days where you feel bad.” It’s a feeling Capaldi knows well, even in the face of stunning success. When he first shot to fame, he won Best New Artist and Song of the Year at the Brit Awards for “Someone You Loved,” which also snagged a Grammy nomination for Song of the Year. But despite the accolades, Capaldi says he was under immense pressure and struggled as a result. (The raw opening line of “Someone You Loved” even proclaims: ‘ I’m going under and this time I fear there’s no one to save me.’ ) Throw in the 2020 pandemic, and needless to say it was a complicated period of time. “Making the first album was as close to dreams coming true as you could possibly get,” he once said . “But as soon as the first album does well, it’s like can he do it again though? A global pandemic is only in the top three weird things to have happened to me in the last three years.” In addition to imposter syndrome related to his success, Capaldi suffered from panic attacks as well as a diagnosis of Tourette Syndrome. With therapy, he managed to make progress on these obstacles. “You could drive yourself crazy thinking about it all,” Capaldi told Billboard UK earlier this year. “But things happened exactly the way they were supposed to happen.” Thanks to help from BetterHelp, Capaldi first gave back by giving fans nearly a million hours of free therapy in order to reap the same rewards he gave on his own personal therapy journey. Now, Capaldi is encouraging fans to Check Back In, and is about to spread even more love. Now, if someone redeems a free month of BetterHelp therapy, they can pay it forward by giving another free month to a loved one. BetterHelp’s Chief Growth Officer Sara Brooks,