In an emotional new song called “make you” Lindsay Ell reveals she was sexually assaulted as a young teen.
“I was raped when I was 13, and it happened again when I was 21,” Ell tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue. “The song only talks about the first time. It’s just a difficult thing to talk about, and it’s something that I process every day still.”
I have never shared this with you guys… but through healing we reach new levels of honesty with ourselves and what made us who we are. Our stories can help create hope and change for other survivors…. 🤍 @people https://t.co/Zr9ef3INIE
— Lindsay Ell (@lindsayell) July 7, 2020
Lindsay shared, “Part of me talking about it now is liberating the little 13-year-old Lindsay and the 21-year-old Lindsay. Pain is something we can let control us if we don’t deal with it, but the minute you put a voice to your story the shame has no power.”
She also revealed that she is launching the Make You Movement under the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee to support at-risk youth, domestic abuse and sexual assault survivors. As the movement’s first partner, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) will be receiving proceeds from “make you.”
“I felt so alone for so long, like ‘This only happened to me.’ But it’s not true. If I would’ve known that when I was 13, I would have felt such a deep feeling of relief.”
