“The Therapist”, Dr. Siri Sat Nam Singh, sits with musicians from the world of rap, rock, pop, and EDM to explore the vulnerable parts of themselves not usually shown in the media. This show did a good job of capturing the artists discussing tough issues like depression, loss, illness, violence, trauma, poverty, and various others. The facilitation process IS for entertainment, so the therapy is informal, but the content still had the ability to strike a chord with viewers.
I found this show compelling for a few reasons:
1. Social media, wealth, and the power of celebrity can distort our perception of rappers, singers, and other musical artists. It’s easy to gloss over reality with carefully curated images and messages of luxury, wealth, love, beauty, entertainment, and lifestyle. The influence they have has power to influence the expectations of the culture- idealizing their public persona without a true understanding of the difficulties and human struggles they continue to experience behind the scenes.
2. It’s raw and realistic. If you haven’t gone to therapy and want to know what the process is like, it’s a good way to get an idea of what it tends to be like (Disclaimer: every therapist has a different style but the general structure tends to be similar. For example, this therapist tends to make more assumptions than usual, probably for entertainment purposes. Typically, the therapist allows more self exploration through questioning). Also, it’s validating for those who question whether or not “you’re doing therapy right” with your own therapist. He shows that the therapist works with what you bring into the room, and that there’s no subject off limits. The show captures the totally normal pauses/silences, bits of awkwardness, occasional confusion/resistance, and things throughout therapeutic process that are parts of the unedited human experience.
3. The direction of session is unpredictable and unscripted, just like therapy in real life. Dr. Siri Sat Nam Singh starts the hour by asking a simple question: if they’ve ever been in therapy before, how they were doing, or posing a curious silence to invite the speaker to start. In some interviews, he may prompt with a question related to something new that happened in the artist’s life. The interview tends to move through various stories and show the client’s interpretation of past experiences, all connecting back to the important beliefs and values they hold in their lives. This process is great for helping people develop insight into both the positive and problematic ways they think and act in the world; which is the first step for creating change.
4. It’s inspiring. These people have encountered both massive success and adversity. The resilience they show serves as a model for others who have gone through similar experiences. It’s a reminder that you are not alone and how sharing these stories is an opportunity for support and healing.
5. He throws you some nuggets you can apply to yourself, too. In his interview with Tee Grizzley and Joey Bada$$, he does a guided meditation. He practices self compassion with Dreezy. He empowers Katy Perry to embrace her authentic self and discusses why it’s important to avoid people pleasing to experience inner peace.
This show was created for entertainment purposes only. I shared this with a mission to normalize therapy in a way that’s raw and relatable for all of us. It’s also important to me to share more content that challenges the reality of “influencer perfectionism” and normalize empathy, feeling our feelings, and addressing issues in our lives in a healthy way. Checkout more clips from “The Therapist” on YouTube or at http://www.viceland.com.
Who would you like to see open up in therapy?