Please note that this is an Archived article and may contain content that is out of date. The use of she/her/hers pronouns in some articles is not intended to be exclusionary. Eating disorders can affect people of all genders, ages, races, religions, ethnicities, sexual orientations, body shapes, and weights.
By, Christina Schultz
If you have ever struggled with issues of negative body image, self shame, or suffocating pressure to be perfect you are not alone.
One of the tragedies of our day is how so many individuals from previous generations have battled these kinds of feelings on their own because emotional and mental hardships weren’t openly shared. I have always felt devastated by Karen Carpenter’s story because she was one of those.
For 14 years, the Carpenters grew in popular demand and released 17 top 20 hits, produced a handful of gold albums, and won multiple Grammy awards. From the outside, Karen Carpenter appeared to have it all: fame, fortune, and the purest of voices recognized all across the world. However, sadly, her life ended much too soon because of her struggles with anorexia brought on in large part by the intense pressure of meeting her perception of the world’s standards of perfection.
This album was born of things near and dear to me. I grew up listening to Karen Carpenter, and I have always loved her iconic voice; her tragic story always gave me something to think about. When I saw pictures of her I saw her for her beauty and talent; she was such a light to me as a young girl interested in music. As I grew older I was shocked to learn that Karen didn’t see herself that way, and her struggles with self image ultimately brought about her death. Admittedly, I have seen myself through a similarly dark lens at times, and since I know that many people struggle in these same ways, I wanted this music to pierce that noise and help us remember how special we actually are. So, I teamed up with Chad Truman of the Nashville Tribute Band and Truman Brothers to record a Karen Carpenter tribute album, called “Don’t You Remember”.
Music can be healing. For me, it has always been a source of connection with love and light as it enhances the most important and intimate relationships in my life. It really is magical! Isn’t it amazing how a song can instantly change the way you feel or immediately transport you to another time? It’s astounding how one medium can do so much: cut through a grumpy mood, liven up a party, offer a voice of comfort, or overwhelm you with understanding of truth. I love all this about music, and how it brings people together. It has the power both to reinforce old memories and to create new ones.
I wanted my first album to highlight Carpenters music to carry a message of hope and increase awareness of the supportive community that now exists for mental illness and eating disorder recovery. I hope that this tribute to some of her music might open the conversation for at least one of you who may be struggling with some of the same things she did.
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Christina Schultz, a wife and mom of four, is a music artist from Virginia who currently lives in Eagle Mountain, Utah. She will release her first album “Don’t You Remember?” a Karen Carpenter Tribute on March 2nd, Karen Carpenter’s birthday. Two singles from the album, “Superstar (We’ve Only Just Begun)” and “Rainy Days and Mondays – Bad Day”, are available now for free download on Apple Music and Spotify.
Find out more about Christina on social media or her website –
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