Big Sean on Mental Health Struggle After Nipsey Hussle’s Death

Big Sean has never shied away from sharing his mental health struggles. Following the death of the rapper’s close friend and collaborator Nipsey Hussle in 2019, Big Sean was open about how he struggled with and sought therapy for depression and anxiety. Now, the rapper is reflecting on the courage it took to speak candidly about his mental health.

In an exclusive clip from ABC News’ All Access interview with Big Sean and Usher, host Linsey Davis asks Big Sean what it felt like to open up about a topic that is “very taboo in the black community.” Big Sean reveals that he didn’t let that stop him. “I was just sharing what was going on in my life. I didn’t realize that I was being so vulnerable. I wasn’t trying to be a spokesperson for mental health per se,” he says. “I was just expressing how I was going into therapy and experiencing a time of heavy ups and downs, a time of depression,” he adds.

Big Sean goes into to detail on that challenging chapter of his life. “It felt like I hit a wall… and I either had to climb over it, or it was gonna fall on me and crush me,” he says. “I had been so about my work that I lost touch with the person that I was. So, I think that led to a very deep battle of depression, deeper than I experienced when I was like a teenager,” the artist reveals. What followed was an arduous journey for the rapper. “I had to take time away from the music industry being my first obligation, and I had to put myself first,” he says. The rapper took four years between 2020’s Detroit 2 and his most recent LP, Better Me Than You.

As Big Sean put his music aside, he also was “taking time to have fun.” “You got to be serious about having fun, because as fast as time goes, we’re here for a limited amount of time,” he says with a chuckle. It’s one of the “many lessons” the rapper learned from that time. “I’m just happy to be here enjoying myself,” he says.

Tune in for the full All Access interview with Usher and Big Sean streaming tonight on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis” at 7pm ET.