Independent Bookstore Day/Brain XP Day
16 year old recording artist and San Diego native Christine Marie Frey (artist name Christine XP) will receive a Mayoral Proclamation from Mayor Kevin Faulconer for her Brain XP organization that provides educational resources and entertainment offerings to benefit teens who battle mental challenges. Christine will be releasing her first book and album (produced by Grammy Award winner Billy Dorsey for thebridgelife), both entitled Brain XP, on that day, which also happens to be Independent Bookstore Day.
Christine has been battling anxiety, depression and bipolar disorder since age 12. Her journey through self-harm, visual and auditory hallucinations, running away, hospitalization, and her forced removal from school led her to seek out material written by other youth who had faced similar situations. The absence of that material prompted her to create the Brain XP Community, write Brain XP the Book, and record the corresponding album, Brain XP the Soundtrack.
Brain XP stands for "Brain Expanded." Christine says, “The brain of a person with mental illness isn’t necessarily sick; it’s simply expanded!” Her desire is to combat stigma using books, music, social media platforms, and innovative performances and speaking opportunities to show that mental illness should be understood rather than feared. The first creative fruits of that desire will be released to the world on what will henceforth be known as Brain XP Day in San Diego, California.