During a December 2021 interview with ‚GQ,‘ Joshua Bassett recalled childhood sexual abuse and explained how music has helped him process some of this trauma.<\/b>
\n\u201cI didn’t remember that until last year, which is pretty insane. I buried it so far.\u201d When Joshua Bassett sat down to talk about his new music with GQ, things got heavy. During the interview, published on Dec.3, Bassett recalled a history of childhood sexual abuse and explained how one of his newly-released songs, \u201cSet Me Free,\u201d is about processing the traumatic experiences that followed him throughout his childhood and teenage years. “ I experienced sexual abuse a lot in my childhood,\u201d Bassett told the outlet, unprompted. \u201cI didn’t remember that until last year, which is pretty insane. I buried it so far,\u201d Bassett revealed during the conversation. Psychologically speaking, repressing these memories is a common trauma response. \u201c Repressed childhood memories or amnesic blocks can be indicative of trauma,\u201d Rev. Sheri Heller, LCSW and psychotherapist, previously told Bustle. Bassett continued, \u201cAnd when I was a teen, a much older man routinely abused me, and I wasn’t able to see it for what it was at the time.“ According to RAINN, the United States\u2019 largest anti-sexual violence organization, this is also typical. \u201cAfter a traumatic experience, it\u2019s common for survivors and those around them to experience denial,\u201d their website explained. Bassett\u2019s \u201cSet Me Free\u201d is a reflection on this abuse. In the interview, he called the song, \u201can anthem for me and the sort of people who\u2019ve held pain and power over me my whole life.\u201d Per Bassett, the message of the song is, \u201cyou\u2019ve taken so much from me, but you don\u2019t get to take all of me.\u201d In a way, this song helped him work through some of this trauma. In the song, Bassett sings heartbreaking lyrics like, \u201cAnd nothing I say will ease the pain\/ Why must I hurt for you to feel OK?\u201d and \u201cYou don’t get to take all of me, set me free\/ And I don’t need your apology.\u201d But \u201cSet Me Free\u201d is only the start of Bassett publicly exploring his past. During the interview, he revealed that he is planning to start a podcast devoted to \u201cheavy talks\u201d in 2022. His goal is that it will become \u201cthe podcast that I wish I had when I was a kid\u201d and that it will \u201chopefully help people who are experiencing that.\u201d On that front, it sounds like he\u2019s already on the right track. If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, you can call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit online.rainn.org. Expert: Rev. Sheri Heller, LCSW and psychotherapist<\/p>\n