With just weeks to go until the release of her new record, Heart Theory, Lindsay Ell, 31, dropped a new song from the album on July 7. The track, “Make You,” is her most personal and emotional song to date. On the song, Lindsay reveals she was sexually assaulted as a teenager, and opens up about how difficult the situation has been for her to overcome in the years since.
The story starts from the very first line of the song, when Lindsay croons, “Thirteen, staring in the mirror, you still look so innocent but that was all gone yesterday.” Other lyrics include, “You’ll feel dirty, you’ll feel guilty for what was done to you” and “When you’re broken past what a broken heart can take, the cracks’ll heal but you’ll always feel the break, and that’s what’s gonna make you.” Lindsay purposely chose July 7 as the song’s release date, as it’s World Forgiveness Day.
“Forgiving people in our past is a huge thing for whatever reason,” she admitted to People. “But forgiving yourself is so important. There’s an incredible amount of healing that can happen and it can’t happen until you can truly open up that forgiveness for your own heart.” In the interview, she also revealed that she was raped for a second time, when she was 21.
The first assault was by a man in her church who was friends with Lindsay’s family. She wasn’t able to open up to her parents about what happened until she was 20 years old. The country singer didn’t go into detail about the second incident, but she did admit that it was “a lot more violent.”
In addition to sharing her story, Lindsay has also launched the Make You Movement under the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. The organization will support “at-risk youth, domestic abuse and sexual assault survivors.” Proceeds from “Make You” will also go to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network.
“Through healing we reach new levels of honesty with ourselves and what made us who we are,” Lindsay wrote on Instagram. “Our stories can help create hope and change for other survivors…and we can turn our pain into something good.” Her album, Heart Theory, is due out on August 14.