Richard Spencer has always shown a natural talent and passion for music.At the age of eight he saw his father, Jeremy, playing on the piano and, without any formal instruction, was able to copy the notes by ear.Now 22, a severe bout of depression nearly robbed him of his dream of having his music heard by people across the world.The young musician hit rock bottom, emotionally. Motivating himself to play music or even making himself a bowl of cereal became “impossible” tasks. He felt like he had lost everything and didn’t want to continue living.“You feel hopeless and the worst part is you never feel like it’s ever going to get better,” he explained.Gradually, with help from family and friends, Mr Spencer has begun putting the pieces of his life back together.For the first time in over a year he is now performing live at Henry VIII Restaurant, The Reefs and Grotto Bay. He made his first appearance at Henry’s on April 1 and said: “It was a little nerve-wracking but it was successful. The hardest part is getting up and starting it.”Mr Spencer’s nightmare started in late 2010, as he was getting ready to take his career to the next level. He had journeyed to France to release his first mini-CD, with his father’s financial support.But his plans came to a screeching halt when he was hit with an episode of mania. The illness, common among creative, young people, is classified by psychotic features like hallucinations and delusions of grandeur.Mr Spencer started to believe he could walk up walls and that he was the son of God.“I was working so hard on my album; the pressure of it all built up in my brain and I went on a manic phase.“It takes over all your senses, touch, smell, taste, energy levels all go through the roof. There is no need to eat or sleep, your confidence is through the roof.“I was going out in Montpelier by myself at night, talking to people I didn’t know and meeting people, going to the front of the queue at clubs and getting in, my people skills were just off the charts.“It’s the most incredible feeling anyone can ever imagine. It’s like reaching an element of enlightenment, but what goes up must come down.”And down the vortex he did go. Mr Spencer had to be hospitalised and put on medications, which he said made him feel hopeless.“I had zero percent of everything no confidence, no love for myself a complete reversal from before and I went into a serious depression.“It was a crippling depression that I went through for like five months. I couldn’t do anything for myself.”While going through the high phase of his illness, he said his music reached its best levels. Whereas before his voice was a little rusty, he described his sound during this phase as “incredible”.He would stay up all night producing music and said the inhibitions and fears that hold many musicians back from reaching their full potential were gone.But then the depression hit and his musical abilities crashed. “I couldn’t play the guitar, sing, play the piano or do anything musical. All the passion I had for the music was all completely gone. That’s what took forever to come back.”Despite the hardships, the musician said he is feeling “200 percent better” and is a more well-rounded person having gone through it.“Even though it was the hardest thing I’ve ever been through, it’s probably the best thing that ever happened to me in my life.“There is a very good quote from [the hit movie] ‘Fight Club’: ‘It’s not until you have lost everything that we are then free to achieve anything.’“That’s kind of how I feel. I lost everything, I didn’t want to continue my life and I didn’t want to be alive. But because I have been through the worst it just frees me to be happy again and be grateful for anything I have.”He thanks his family and friends Ben Bernardo, Jack Quirke, Jake Wetton and Mark Coltman for supporting him through the ordeal.Mr Spencer said he is feeling like himself again and appreciates the normal things in every day life. He has started producing in his spare time and is excited about performing live at some of the Island’s popular tourist spots.He hopes to one day write songs about his experience and hopes people can benefit from his story.”There is always light at the end of the tunnel for people going through depression. The first thing you have to do is dig deep and love yourself because when you love yourself everything else becomes a lot easier.“I think my experience has allowed me to find that love for myself again.”He also encourages people not to rely on anyone else to make them happy.The musician encourages anyone going through a similar ordeal to seek professional help, but said they can also contact him via rspencermusic@gmail.com, for support.In the future he hopes to finish recording his mini-album, but for now you can catch him performing at The Reefs on Fridays and Grotto Bay Hotel on Saturdays with both performances starting at 8.30pm. He also performs at Henry VIII Restaurant on Sundays from 9pm until 12am.http://www.youtube.com/rspencermusic