Lindsay Ell is using her voice to take her power back from the people that stole it from her at a young age and hopes to inspire others to do the same.
In her new song, “Make You” Ell reveals that she was raped at the young age of 13 years old by a family friend from church, who groomed her and eventually sexually assaulted her.
'Make You' is a powerful new song about healing, acceptance, and survivorship. Thank you @LindsayEll for using your platform and working with us to share help and hope with other survivors. https://t.co/gRAXtEn35S
— RAINN (@RAINN) July 7, 2020
In the chorus of the song, Ell reflects on how she felt at different stages in her life about the sexual assault. She sings:
“It’s gonna make you hate yourself / When you didn’t hate yourself at all / It’s gonna make you build a fortress / Where you never had a wall / It’s gonna make you question God / And wonder if He even cares / ‘Cause it’s so messed up, it’s so wrong, it’s just so unfair.”
After the assault, she was concerned everyone was going to judge her and that her life would be ruined, so she kept it a secret. It wasn’t until she was 20 that she shared what had happened with her parents. They had no clue it happened and were absolutely horrified at the thought. Ell went on to say that she was so grateful she told them and for how they helped her seek help and cope after finding out.
Unfortunately, this was not the only time Ell was raped. At the age of 21, she was raped again by a different man. In an interview with PEOPLE, she declined to go into further detail but said that it was “different” and “a lot more violent.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCWAXtoBYqs/
Ell is sharing her story in hopes of letting other sexual assault victims know they aren’t alone. “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,” she shared in her interview with PEOPLE.
She is also 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 her new single “Make You.”
Watch Lindsay Ell’s video for “Make You” below and download the song by clicking here.
You can also donate to Lindsay’s Make You Movement by clicking here.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.