1. Epilepsy and popular music
Mia Tuft, Centre for Rare Epilepsy-related Disorders, Karl Otto Nakken, National Centre for Epilepsy,
Oslo University Hospital, NORWAY
Objective Popular music reflects general opinions to a certain extent in the modern society. In this study we wanted to investigate how people with epilepsy are presented in different musical genres.
Methods An internet search through wwwazlyrics.com, and was performed, using the search terms seizure, epileptic and epilepsy.
Results Three forms of negative attitudes or stigma towards epilepsy were the most frequent findings. Epilepsy was described as contagious, frightening, and related to sexuality. The stigma was most obvious in three specific genres; death metal, hard rock and hip hop. Yet, other types of popular music had a more positive focus, dealing with every day life of living with epilepsy, or being proud of oneself despite the disorder. The positive attitude seem to be a growing trend, and is particularly seen in artists themselves suffering from epilepsy.
Conclusions Negative focus and stigma about epilepsy seem to be the most common presentation in popular music of today. However, a minority of artists, especially those with epileptic disorders themselves, describe epilepsy in positive or neutral terms.
Negative attitudes/stigma
Epilepsy as contagious, frightening,
negative sexual descriptions
Overrepresented music genres
Death metal
for example Malevolent Creations’ song Seizure:
Living in fear
Tearing your soul
No cure for this pain
This is your hell
Given at birth
Symptoms take course
Seizure taking over…
Consuming… convulse…
Hard rock/heavy metal
for example the Irish heavy metal band Therapy?’s song Infernal Love
Hip hop
for example Black Eyed Peas` song Retarded
Artists with epilepsy representing a different focus
Ian Curtis
(Joy Division)
Susan Boyle
Prince
Neil Young
Lil Wayne
Chris Knox
Elton John
Adam Horowitz
(Beastie Boys)
Lapse
I fall (how do you fall?)
I fly (how do you fly?)
I remember All of those skies (Lyrics: Chris Knox)
Artists without epilepsy representing a positive focus,
through lyrics
Anthony and the Johnsons: Epilepsy is dancing
Epilepsy is dancing
She's the Christ now departing And I'm finding my rhythm As I twist in the snow …
I cry "glitter is love!" My eyes pinned inside With green jewels Hanging like Christmas stars From a golden vein (Lyrics: Anthony Hergarty)
Nick Cave: Christina the Astonishing
Lyrics about a saint from Belgium,
who was stigmatized because of her
epilepsy, but later became an
important eccentric heroine.
Epilepsy described by people close to the epilepsy diagnoses (relatives, partners etc)
Cage (American rap artist): Creep
Describes stigma when his girlfriend gets ill with meningitis and is diagnosed with epilepsy
”Known in town as the creep that’s into zombies” (Lyrics: Cage)
Hüsker Dü: Hardly getting over it
Grandma, she got sick, she is going to die And grandpa had a seizure, moved into a hotel cell and died away My parents, they just wonder when they both are going to die And what do I do when they die? Now I'm hardly getting over it Hardly getting used to getting by Hardly getting over it Hardly getting used to getting by, by (Lyrics: Hüsker Dü)
References: and Search terms: seizure, epileptic and epilepsy