Nessa Barrett. It’s a name you recognize if you’re an active user on TikTok or have previously listened to her music. Like other young stars, Nessa used the social media platform to her advantage, gaining an online presence to turn to a career in music. Her most recent album, Young Forever, was released on October 14 of this year. She recently sat down with Alex Cooper, host of the hit podcast Call Her Daddy, to discuss everything from relationship dramas to recent mental health struggles. I’m going to dive into the main points they touched upon to lay out all the drama we all wanted to know.
*Trigger warning: this article contains mention of self-harm and suicide.
- DAting Josh Richards
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The relationship between Barrett and Josh Richards took social media by storm. According to their relationship timeline, these two were in a relationship for about six months, from January 2020 to August 2020. Nessa explained on the podcast how the relationship between her and Richards developed as a result of social media. Nessa described the relationship as “too serious for how young we were” and talked about how she felt a lot of the good parts of their time together were for views and content for online followers. As time went on, the two became busy with work schedules, and Barrett also struggled mentally with personal battles. Since they started dating at such a young age, as time went by, they grew up and grew apart from each other, leading to the breakup.
- TIKTOK DRAMA
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The conversation between Nessa and Alex then led into the clickbait I feel everyone wanted to hear about: the drama that ensued between Josh Richards/Nessa Barett and Mads Lewis/Jaden Hossler. Barrett described the event as a “sticky situation” since all four were living together and friends. She touched on the rumor that is often assumed— that she and Hossler started their romance while making the song la di die. She dispelled the rumor and said that the song had already been made when they began their relationship. She referenced the time they appeared on The Ellen Show to sing the duet, and people assumed that they were making it official, which was completely not true. Barrett also explained how the backlash from social media took a distressing toll on her, with people calling her a “slut” and “homie hopper.” She understands that everyone has different sides to the story and said, “I feel bad more than anything and I realize it was selfish.”
- Dating Jaden Hossler
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Barrett described her time with the musician (April 2021 — April 2022) as something that she does not regret. She said that they were able to experience many amazing things together, such as singing together at Lollapalooza in 2021. During their relationship, both of them were going through mental health struggles. They seemingly became co-dependent with one another since they always felt as though they were outcasts and “us against the world.” Things got hard between the two when the mental health struggles continued and became worse for both of them. She recognized that they got together too soon and needed to work on themselves before jumping into another relationship.When asked about cheating speculations, Nessa confirmed that Jaden did cheat, although she was quick to add that it wasn’t physical. Seemingly unsure, Nessa added, “I don’t think.” But she says that she understands him because she resonates with the feelings of waiting for attention but not getting it from the person you’re with since she was going through mental troubles and couldn’t be present all the way.
- Personal Struggles with Mental Health
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Nessa dove into her long-time struggle with mental health, saying that it goes as far back as when she was six years old and diagnosed with anxiety. She was an athletic child and loved to play soccer. During these years, she suffered three concussions, leading to her ending sports. She detailed a very dark and traumatic experience that she endured when she was 14. Shortly after her last concussion, she began to spiral and go to a deep dark place in her mind. The trauma from her brain exasperated her mental health, and she became severely depressed, leading to her first suicide attempt by overdosing on medication. After being brought to the hospital and treated, she was placed in a psychiatric ward. She is grateful for the time there and felt it helped her journey.
At age 18, she was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder, a mental illness that is a self-taught disorder developed from childhood trauma. Nessa described the symptoms as something that adapts to your entire personality and “makes you act out in ways that aren’t you and learn to become very self-aware to help yourself.” Although she wasn’t willing to go into detail about the specific childhood trauma she endured, she did explain that she is learning to detach herself from this trauma and forgive.
- Losing Cooper Noriega and dealing with grief
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A recent event that disrupted Nessa Barrett’s life was the loss and death of her closest friend Cooper Noriega and the aftermath of not having him in her life anymore. She described it as something that she couldn’t comprehend and said she never had anyone in her life understand her the way Noriega did. She explained how she lost herself and became destroyed since the thought never crossed her mind that she would have to live a day without him. Barrett touched upon something she had never publicly discussed before, speaking on how she and Noriega would openly talk about how much they struggled and when they were suicidal. They had each other to lean on, “so if one of us was going out, we were going out together.”
After finding out the news of Noriega’s death, she found herself in a very dark headspace. She felt that her life was falling apart and was already struggling from the breakup with Hossler. This dark depression and isolation of herself led to a suicide attempt taking an excessive amount of Xanax, originally prescribed for her anxiety, and planning to drive off a cliff while overdosing. Her friends found her and got Barrett out of the car. The following day Barrett and her friends called an ambulance, and she was then admitted to a mental hospital to seek treatment.
- New outlook on life
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After going through the worst of her struggles, Barrett explained that she has a new outlook on life. Her philosophy is living in the moment and being grateful for the small things in life. She has developed so much faith, saying, “God must want me here for a reason.” Able to see life in a different light, she wants to be here on this Earth to make an impact on those struggling themselves. Nessa Barrett continues to shine in her music career and appreciates all the love and support she is receiving from her fans from the new album. Barrett loves her music and says that she’ll continue “as long as there’s one person that relates.”
After watching this podcast, I have a newfound respect and love for Nessa Barrett. She is someone that can spread awareness of mental health and help take down the stigma surrounding the illness. Although people may dislike her and want to call her another “wannabe TikTok star,” I can say that I am of fan of hers and will definitely be checking out more of her songs on her newly released album Young Forever.
Resources
If you or someone you know is seeking help for mental health concerns, visit the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) website, or call 1-800-950-NAMI(6264). For confidential treatment referrals, visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) website, or call the National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP(4357). In an emergency, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK(8255) or call 911.
If you or someone you know is considering self-harm or experiencing suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.