Outstanding newcomer Stephanie Rainey has revealed the brand new video for her latest single ‘100 Like Me’.
The compassionate video comprises of thirteen, totally unique strangers. Each cast member has their own story to tell, so an array of personal struggles is touched upon. These range from mental health disorders such as anxiety, bipolar, depression, psychosis and addiction, to suffering from the effects of being a single parent or simply lacking self- confidence. The video impressively combines the inconceivable experiences of these scarred individuals, and brings to life the hope of rehabilitation.
Cathleen Voyseym, one of the narratives shown in the video, was diagnosed with ‘Bipolar Effective Type 2’ at 18 years old. She says, “Three years ago, I was a chaotic mess, a person who struggled to leave her bed and believed the world was against her. Finally, I am out of it and have learnt to manage my condition.”
The group includes some huge influencers, such as award-winning mental health campaigner and vlogger, Johnny Benjamin, MBE. You may recognise Johnny for being behind the ‘Find Mike’ campaign, which he launched with the support of Rethink Mental Illness. It became a social media sensation, eventually reaching over 300 million people worldwide and raising significant awareness. Laura Lejeune, another renowned advocate for mental health through vlogging, also features.
With an immensely moving message like its predecessor ‘Please Don’t Go’, Stephanie says of the passionate and heart-rending new video “I wanted this video, like Please Don’t Go to have some meaning. What I learned from making that first video is that everybody is just looking for someone to relate to. The conversations that were started between people, total strangers, in the comments section under it as well as the thousands of messages I received from people telling me their stories was testament to that. So with 100 Like Me I wanted to open the conversation up again. The concept is very simple, simple shots with illustrations that help to tell some of these incredible stories. I am so grateful to have had an amazing group of people come to London, talk about their experiences and be part of this video. What fascinated me was the realization that these amazing people who appear are no different to anyone else, have struggled so much, and for much of that time, they struggled alone. They were brought to the darkest of places and have fought to overcome it.”
Rainey speaks fondly of the track, reasoning that it can bring comfort and guidance to anyone, no matter how severe their suffering has been, “100 Like Me is a song for anybody who has ever thought they were the only one experiencing a certain thing or feeling a certain way. It’s about recognizing that you’re not alone and that you don’t have to battle within yourself to overcome everything, look around and see that everybody is struggling with something. Everyone is looking for someone to relate to. And there are more people like you. For me the song relates to thinking I’m not good enough, whether it’s how I look, the person I am, the music I create or the friend I am. As well as that, I’ve always carried a massive sense of self – consciousness and embarrassment and I’ve struggled a lot with body issues."
