Dark Horses Creates Educational and Hilarious Playlist for Menopause Mandate
‘I Couldn’t Sleep A Wink Last Night. Because Of. Hot Flashes. I’ve Got. Brain Fog. Violent Mood Swings. When Did I Become Such a Bitch. I Guess I Just Feel Like. Somebody That I Used To Know.’
Created by creative duo, Sarah Levitt and Matt Roach, The Menopause Mix: Hot 100 is an innovative Spotify playlist of 100 song titles that everyone should listen to. Some they'll know, some are more… unusual. But when read in order, everyone will see the whole thing adds up to an educational and hilarious narrative of the 30+ symptoms of menopause.
- I Am (Jorja Smith)
- A Lady of a Certain Age (The Divine Comedy)
- Going Through Changes (Eminem)
- Menopause (Jenny Talia)
- Never Saw It Coming (The Jesus and Mary Chain)
You can view the whole playlist here:
The playlist spans a variety of genres and eras, weaving together famous hits by the likes of Adele, Kate Bush, Rod Stewart, Spice Girls, Peter Gabriel and JAY-Z, along with lesser-known gems such as the comedy song ‘Menopause’ by Australian musician Jenny Talia.
The campaign celebrates the introduction of the single prescription charge for HRT which finally launched on April 1st 2023. Originally proposed in October 2021 by Carolyn Harris MP and chair of the Menopause APPG, this allows women to buy a certificate for the cost of two NHS prescriptions at £19.30, and receive HRT for a year. This is said to be benefiting 400,000 women, who are currently paying £225 a year for oestrogen and progesterone. It doesn’t include testosterone.
The playlist artwork features a painting by Helen Redman, a widely-exhibited artist and lecturer whose 1992 piece titled ‘Wiseblood’ was inspired by her own experience of menopause. Redman, now aged 83, has work in the permanent collections of galleries including Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts and Brooklyn Museum in New York.
Spotify, Clear Channel and Route Media have provided inventory pro bono to support the campaign and Universal Music Publishing has cleared the track titles in support of the effort. Celebrated individual artists and their publishers have also provided permissions for use of their names and song titles across the campaign, including Peter Gabriel, Rod Stewart, Goldie Lookin' Chain, NOFX and Jenny Talia.
This new campaign follows Menopause Mandate’s 'It's Beyond a Joke' campaign, which ran around World Menopause Day in October 2022. The work will run across social, OOH, Spotify leaderboards, radio, and podcasts, alongside Patron appearances on daytime TV to discuss favourite songs from the playlist.
Melissa Robertson, CEO of Dark Horses and director at Menopause Mandate, said “From my own experience the most relevant part of the playlist for me is Mozey’s ‘I’ve got’ and Purple Cat’s ‘Brain Fog’. Everyone will see their own symptoms in the list though - or those of their partners/colleagues/mums/sisters/friends. As with our previous 'It's Beyond a Joke' campaign, the ambition is to make this tricky topic more approachable and accessible to everyone by using humour to disarm and engage broader audiences.”
Mariella Frostrup, chair of Menopause Mandate said “What better way to celebrate the introduction of the prepayment certificate and Menopause Mandate’s first birthday? This mix has something for all music tastes, and be sure to read the playlist out loud and in order. It’s wit incarnate.”
Peter Gabriel said "Until recently all the suffering, treatment and opportunities for menopause were not out in the open. The Menopause Mix is a great idea to use music and humour to bring it out in the daylight, get the information accessible and change attitudes."
Sir Rod Stewart said: “I'm happy to be included in such a stellar line-up, and to support menopausal women.”
