For D&B producer and DJ, Turno, having a platform as an artist means more than achieving fame and adoring fans- it can be a vehicle for change and healing. This couldn’t be more important after sadly losing his brother to suicide a year ago.
This empowered Turno to effectively make a difference. A year after the passing of his brother, Fabio Moliterno, Turno debuted his latest single What’s On Your Mind? , a hip-hop and grime track featuring SJ Loq, Myleedan, Phizi and Too Lippy.
The follow-up D&B version of the tune, which will be released on October 10, will have all its profits donated to mental health charity, Mind. Turno (real name Francesco ‘Franko’ Moliterno) hopes that the song based on Fabio’s story can encourage other men to open up and talk. Ultimately he hopes that this can help spark meaningful discussions and urgent action.
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As Turno prepares to perform the heartfelt single at Bristol’s Tokyo World this Sunday, he speaks to Bristol Live about his most personal projects to date and why he will never stop advocating for mental health.
He said: “It’s a great cause and it’s a very vulnerable one. We’re really proud of it and I’ve done a drum and bass remix of [What’s on Your Mind?] which I’ve been playing at my sets every time and at every show for the last two months. That’s how I’m going to end the [Tokyo World] set by playing the song.
“It seems to be going down really well and people are opening up to me about their experiences. We’re going to champion the song throughout every set I can and I’ll probably always play it as my last song because it has a personal attachment to me. It’s really nice that everyone has seen the vision and taken it on board.”
The original version of What’s on Your Mind? is featured throughout the first episode of the upcoming second series of BBC One’s We Are England- where Turno was joined by his loved ones to raise awareness about mental health. For the first time publicly, Turno and his family will be providing a raw insight into the impact of their tragic loss.
He states it was extremely ‘tough’ during filming but equally necessary to showcase- in order to make a stand for an important cause.
He said: “The BBC documentary was tough but also it did feel like it helped a lot. I definitely see that in my father who you can tell after that- a weight has been lifted. Ultimately we are letting people into our lives, which is very personal and obviously we can get judged.
“We’re opening our hearts to the public and to get the BBC to shoot around us by coming into our houses and asking us questions. It was very personal but they were amazing. They did a really good job and we watched the film for the first time- I was really blown away at how good it looked and how well they portrayed it.
“It’s a really sensitive subject so I didn’t want it to look tacky or cheesy and just not portrayed in the right way. I see it now as something that I have for the rest of my life and I can watch whenever I want, to obviously remember my brother and the whole journey because we all do go really deep.”
He continued: “It definitely has helped me to be a bit more stern. If I know that something is up with someone, I will speak to them. I’d like to think it’s made me more of a caring person and a lot more open to speak up about deeper problems. Now that my mum has lost her son, I feel even more obligatory to be there for her and I want to be there for her.
“Our relationship has gone even stronger now because I do feel terrible seeing my family upset. I believe that because my brother didn’t talk, he had so many things building up on his shoulders until it comes to a point where you can’t carry that anymore. I just wish he didn’t feel like that.”
Turno hopes that by sharing his story can make way for others to feel connected and loved through shared experiences. With a powerful message he aims to continue spreading, he is looking forward to performing at Tokyo World this weekend, as well seeing the reception for the upcoming BBC documentary- whose new release date has yet to be confirmed.
Turno said: “Everyone has someone in their life that they confide in and if you don’t- you should. It’s just about talking and being more aware of where you can go. Even if it’s not friends and family, there’s a great charity called Mind , there’s Samaritans . There’s all these mental health charities where you can speak to people and have conversations.
“You just have to recognise how you’re feeling. I’ll give you an example of me- I hit it too hard a couple of years ago because I had a really busy summer and I was partying a lot. It felt great at the time and at the end of the summer, I had a mad crash. I felt so low that I didn’t want to make music and didn’t want to do anything. There’s always professional help but you’ve got to want to do something about it. “
He added: “It’s like when you’re ill, you need to take medicine or go see a doctor and it’s the same thing with this. That’s why it needs to be looked at more seriously because currently there is a massive stigma among men. We need more people, more public figures, coming together and suggesting things. I think it should be taught in schools- why wouldn’t you want to teach something that is the bigger killer among men over 40?
“I’m really passionate about getting the message out there to a wider audience- I’m just hoping loads of people come on board to help spread the world. Help people not take the route which my brother unfortunately did. All we can do now is use what we know to try and help others.”
With Turno and his family supporting mental health charity Mind that has become deeply close to their hearts since Fabio’s passing, all profits from Turno’s recent project will be donated to Mind. You can click here to find out how you can help.
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