Story Behind arise
Hi, my name is Jhonny K. This is my story. I came home one day when I was ten years old to find my parents in my house huddling close to each other on the couch with my mountain of a Dad crying. Up until that point, I had never seen my Dad cry... ever. So obviously I knew something was going on. I asked my Mom what was going on and she responded, "Your Uncle Kevin killed himself this morning" My Dad was the second oldest of 7 boys, the oldest brother Kevin, one of my favorite uncles, was gone.
Through the next ten years of my life through junior high and high school, I lost several more friends to this enigma called suicide. Because I saw this burden haunt so many people, I started to study mental health, personal development, and interpersonal communications all with the intent of helping someone recover from whatever would bring them to the point of killing themselves. I went to college and got my bachelors in communications and leadership development to further this study. At the same time, I took up music. I listened to music and found it to be my refuge and a place I could go to that would restore my own ability to feel again.
After college, I went through several life coaching seminars. I met one of my best friends at one of the trainings and we eventually became roommates and talked about everything. I moved out a year later and a little afterwards, he had some bad things happen and killed his ex girlfriend and then killed himself in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. This came out of no where and I could not believe it. Rocked my world. A week after that, a childhood friend took his life as well because of some bad circumstances in his life. This took me back to the darkness and doubt that filled me when I was a kid. I remember being so filled with it, that it consumed me with questions of what more could I have done, are all my beliefs really true or just something to make me feel better?
I determined then to be a light to those who needed help. To use my skills and talents in both music and healing arts of coaching/counseling to bring people back from the edge of darkness they feel and to the light of life. So I created ARISE with the intention of using both those talents to help kids, teens, parents, and anyone else who may be struggling with losing someone to suicide or may be suicidal themselves.
I found artists, producers, musicians who were willing to give of their time, talents, and abilities to this cause. We raised funds in 2013 through IndieGogo and had enough to record an album. We as a team have spent the last year writing, recording, and making this the best we could using what we have to us to create the ARISE album which will be released in March of 2015. The funds from the album will be given to our non profit partners. We are all about creating awareness around this issue, helping people be more open to talk about their darkness, and stop the problems that so many silently suffer from. ARISE is not a counseling or therapy, we are an organization who wants to help bring awareness around depression and suicide issues through music and media.
My prayer and hope is that through our videos, live events, music, and our cause that we reach someone who may be suffering and be a catalyst of change in their lives. Our goal is to help those in darkness ARISE from the depths of despair and become who they were meant to be.
Through the next ten years of my life through junior high and high school, I lost several more friends to this enigma called suicide. Because I saw this burden haunt so many people, I started to study mental health, personal development, and interpersonal communications all with the intent of helping someone recover from whatever would bring them to the point of killing themselves. I went to college and got my bachelors in communications and leadership development to further this study. At the same time, I took up music. I listened to music and found it to be my refuge and a place I could go to that would restore my own ability to feel again.
After college, I went through several life coaching seminars. I met one of my best friends at one of the trainings and we eventually became roommates and talked about everything. I moved out a year later and a little afterwards, he had some bad things happen and killed his ex girlfriend and then killed himself in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. This came out of no where and I could not believe it. Rocked my world. A week after that, a childhood friend took his life as well because of some bad circumstances in his life. This took me back to the darkness and doubt that filled me when I was a kid. I remember being so filled with it, that it consumed me with questions of what more could I have done, are all my beliefs really true or just something to make me feel better?
I determined then to be a light to those who needed help. To use my skills and talents in both music and healing arts of coaching/counseling to bring people back from the edge of darkness they feel and to the light of life. So I created ARISE with the intention of using both those talents to help kids, teens, parents, and anyone else who may be struggling with losing someone to suicide or may be suicidal themselves.
I found artists, producers, musicians who were willing to give of their time, talents, and abilities to this cause. We raised funds in 2013 through IndieGogo and had enough to record an album. We as a team have spent the last year writing, recording, and making this the best we could using what we have to us to create the ARISE album which will be released in March of 2015. The funds from the album will be given to our non profit partners. We are all about creating awareness around this issue, helping people be more open to talk about their darkness, and stop the problems that so many silently suffer from. ARISE is not a counseling or therapy, we are an organization who wants to help bring awareness around depression and suicide issues through music and media.
My prayer and hope is that through our videos, live events, music, and our cause that we reach someone who may be suffering and be a catalyst of change in their lives. Our goal is to help those in darkness ARISE from the depths of despair and become who they were meant to be.
