How The Lzzy Birds Saved Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale

When Lzzy Hale found herself drowning in depression during Halestorm’s tour for Back from the Dead, a group of 11 die-hard fans noticed she was out of character and decided to intervene. The group calls themselves The Lzzy Birds. And their intervention not only saved Halestorm’s tour; it may have even saved Lzzy Hale’s life.

“Something snapped in me during this last album cycle,” Lzzy Hale told The Allison Hagendorf Show, “I went through a very depressing time during Back From The Dead. It started out very joyous and then halfway through the album cycle, I started to lose the idea that it was me doing this… it’s almost like I’ve built this thing and it’s beautiful and I’ve had all of these things happen to me that are wonderful but it didn’t seem like it was me. But it’s like now, all of a sudden, I built this monster that now I have to live up to and is who I am.”

She continues: “I started to almost be down on myself for the things that I get sad about or the things that I still have to work through in my life and something happened – I’m going to try not to get emotional about it but on the last tour, I had somewhat of a mental breakdown.”

And a breakdown it most certainly was. In fact, The Lzzy Birds called it as soon as they saw Hale. It was about halfway through the tour and Hale was off of her game – way off. The Birds, who’d been following Halestorm for over a decade, making every meet and greet and usually ending up in the front row of every show, took Hale aside and asked whether she was okay. They told her she was lacking her usual spark.

Hale tried to shrug it off, saying she was simply over-tired, but the Girls didn’t buy it.

The story gets better:

“The next day they come to the meet and greet and each gave me a letter. Each letter said in its own way, ‘Hey, here’s the reason why we come to your shows, here’s the reason why you speak to us, here’s the reason that you make us feel so strong, and it’s okay if you’re not doing well right now. We are not gonna abandon you and it’s okay not to be our leader , our strong person. If you need anything we’re here, you don’t have to tell us anything but it’s okay to feel what you’re feeling right now.”

Hale continues:

She adds: “I just lost it. They gave me permission to be flawed. And so the next day, we’re hanging out and they all ended up by the buses, so I kind of held court and I just told them everything I was going through. And then I’m like, ‘Oh my God, I can be all of the things.’

Then finally:

“So from that moment, I’m like, ‘Okay, what is not serving me?’ So I’ve shed a lot of things that don’t serve me. All of the weird depraved thoughts that I have about myself, I just stopped thinking about that and I’m like, ‘You know what? That’s not a me problem, that’s everybody else’s problem. I like myself and I can honour even the things that I think are wrong about me because even the wrong things were [still part of] the vehicle to get me here, to get me to the right place. It’s like, I am the sum of all my parts.”

Lzzy Hale: All Hands on Deck

Talk about an intervention! That’s a board-certified get-with; the kind of which even rockstars are seldom accustomed. It is that rare. Think about it: how many rockstars have a dedicated coterie who are not only close enough to notice when your game is off, but close enough to call you on it too. Then, more importantly, to get you to listen to them as well.

That’s what the Lzzy Birds did for Lizzy Hale. And it’s a bet hat Lzzy Hale is still thanking her lucky stars for the Lzzy Birds.

But you don’t have to have a coterie of die-hard fans in your corner to find help with depression. Everyone has someone in their corner. Most of us even have a few someones. It’s a question of being open and honest with them.

So, if you’re feeling depressed or out of sorts, say something to someone close to you. They’re sure to reply in kind, and you’re sure to get the help you need.

Healing Properties wholeheartedly thanks Emma Wilkes at Guitar.com for the piece that begat this piece, and The Allison Hagendorf Show for the interview that got it all started.