Today’s guest makes me feel grateful in many different ways. One person I’m grateful to is Ryan Smith for introducing me to Mark Mallman. Mark’s story is incredible. But the recurring theme is victory. He’s overcome so much throughout his life and it all boils down to his mother’s message: It’s going to be OK. He grew up with music all around. It was there from his earliest memories. He began studying piano at age three with his mother. But his childhood wasn’t easy. He grew up in, as he calls it, “a house of depression”. His mother was diagnosed with major depressive disorder. But he found positivity through the darkness with music and his mother’s message, which has become his own. He has done it all, musically speaking: band projects, solo albums, video game music, incidental music for General Hospital (which has a universe that is more complex than Star Wars), and music marathons. But these marathons are INTENSE. The last one in 2012 was 8 days and 150 hours of non-stop playing. When Mark lost his mother, he himself fell into a depression. To break out of it, he created The Happiness Playlist. He talks about what it is and how it’s grown. He recently release a single, Seen My Own Ghost, and is poised to release another in a few weeks, called Cancer. He’s also working on a new album, a tour, and a new book. Follow him on TikTok, X, Instagram, and Facebook all as Mark Mallman. His videos are great and you learn something! You can follow us @PerformanceAnx on X and Instagram. Reach out and let us know what you’d like to see next!You can pick up our merch at performanceanx.threadless.com. You can also send us a coffee through ko-fi.com/performanceanxiety. Now check out Mark Mallman on Performance Anxiety on the Pantheon Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices