A New Study Shows This Song Actually Prevented Hundreds of Suicides

Rapper Logic’s 2017 suicide prevention anthem “1-800-273-8255,” named for the number for the US National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, earned him Grammy nominations for Song of the Year and Best Music Video that year. But according to a new study, the song also achieved something far more significant: it resulted in an actual dip in suicides upon its release.

As CNN reports, the study — which was released on Monday — found that calls to the hotline increased by a whopping 50%, or roughly 10,000 calls, after Logic performed the hit song on MTV’s Video Music Awards (VMAs). In addition to the surge in calls, there was also a 5.5% reduction in suicides among 10- to 19-year-olds over the course of three time periods: the first 34 days after the song’s release, the days following Logic’s performance at the 2017 VMAs and in the wake of his performance at the 2018 Grammy Awards. That translates to a reduction in 245 suicides below the expected number during that period.

“Celebrities but also non-celebrities can have an important role in suicide prevention if they communicate about how they have coped with crisis situations and suicidal ideation,” study author Thomas Niederkrotenthaler, an associate professor in the department of social and preventive medicine at the Medical University of Vienna, told CNN.

“To know that my music was actually affecting people’s lives, truly, that’s what inspired me to make the song,” Logic said in a statement reacting to the study’s findings. “We did it from a really warm place in our hearts to try to help people. And the fact that it actually did, that blows my mind.”