The fifth fundraiser by Humanli saw acts from across Ireland raise funds for local supports
By Jack Butler
Dolan’s Warehouse played host to a special fundraiser last Friday, as the fifth Music for Mental Health concert took place.
The event, organised by Humanli founder Karl Daly, saw creatives from Limerick, Tipperary and further afield taking to the stage for sincerity, comedy and music.
The show was opened by Ukrainian migrants Mykola Soldok and Dmytro Cherepakha, who performed traditional folk songs, followed by Grace Tubridy, a former student of Corpus Christi Primary School, who were one of the beneficiaries of the night.
Speaking at the event, Karl said “At events like tonight, all we can do is raise awareness, bring people together, have a bit of fun and support the charities that are doing a tough job every day.
“It’s young people, old people, everybody seems to be affected. Covid didn’t help…life today just seems to be very very stressful for everybody.”
Limerick representatives who took part include students from the University of Limerick’s Bachelors in World Music course, as well as alt-rock band JOYCE.
Speaking after the event, frontman and namesake, Joyce Zacks, said “I think it’s very important [for the arts to support mental health], I find that a load of creatives do tend to steer towards having mental health issues and I feel like that does contribute to their creativity.
“I can talk for myself, I have had a weird past with mental health issues and last September, I was actually diagnosed with BPD (borderline personality disorder), so having a fundraiser and doing it for something like this is so important to me, especially since all my music was a way for me to cope with my mental illness,” she added.
Other acts who performed on the night included Meath native opera singer Leah Barniville, who was a semi-finalist on Britain’s Got Talent in 2017, comedian Jon Kenny, fresh off the success of “The Banshees of Inisherin,” and former lead singer of Walking on Cars, Pa Sheehy.
Other beneficiaries from the event included Limerick Suicide Watch and Blue Box Creative Arts Therapy Centre.
