JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Singer and former Nickelodeon star, Drake Bell, will be performing in Jacksonville Saturday night at Kona Skate Park.
He is preparing to drop his sixth album in October.
Bell became popular —in part— from the hit show: “Drake and Josh.”
You may remember, a few months ago, Bell was featured in the “explosive” docuseries called “Quiet On Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV. The five-episode series detailed allegations of toxic environments on Nickelodeon sets in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Bell revealed that he was sexually abused by his acting coach while he was a teenager.
RELATED | Ex-Nickelodeon producer Schneider sues ‘Quiet on Set’ makers for defamation, sex abuse implications
Bell spoke with News4JAX Anchor/Reporter Aaron Farrar in a wide-ranging interview that includes details about his abuse, life after and a 2021 case Bell pleaded guilty to.
Watch the full interview below.
“These shows that I am doing in the States now are really cool because they are much more intimate,” Bell said ahead of Saturday’s concert. “It’s just me and my guitar and a piano. I get to really vibe with the audience, and they have been really great. I just think the magic of creating something and then going and playing it live and hearing everyone sing it back to you is pretty incredible.”
Bell said he spent a lot of time in Mexico as he is recording his upcoming sixth studio album.
Along the way, he has been dropping singles like “Hollywouldn’t” and “I Kind of Relate.”
“The new shows that I played in California, everyone was singing every lyric to these new songs,” Bell said. “I was just like, ‘These just came out like two weeks ago. How do you know all of the lyrics to all of these songs?’ It is really inspiring.”
Hearing what fans have to say about those songs goes a long way.
“It is really great opportunity to be able to truly connect with the fans,” Bell said after doing meet and greets after some performances. “You write a song, and it might mean something to you. The lyrics may mean something to you. But then you hear [a fan’s] interpretation of it and how it affected their life or what they were going through at every moment of their life. Realizing that, and poetry can take on a life for somebody else. It means something else that may not have been your intention for this song but didn’t realize that word lot of strength. It can affect a lot of people in many different ways.”
In March, Bell revealed that he was the unnamed minor in the 2003 sexual assault case against former Nickelodeon dialogue coach, Brian Peck.
Peck pleaded no contest to lewd and lascivious acts with a 14 or 15-year-old child and oral copulation with a minor under 16.
According to court documents out of Los Angeles County Superior Court, Peck served more than a year in jail and was required to register as a sex offender.
“I don’t know how to describe it,” Bell said when asked about the abuse. It was horrific, and there are really no words for it.”
Following that revelation, Bell said he is working on moving past it but also using his experience to help others who may be hesitant to talk about their respective circumstances.
“To be honest, it has been an emotional roller coaster,” he said. “It is something that I never thought I would ever speak about or tell the world. But it is a weight lifted. When you hold on to something so long inside, it really just becomes this big weight on you that you live with every day and night. To be able to get it out to relay that song through my lyrics has been a tremendous cathartic help and experience.”
Bell said going to therapy had a positive effect.
“Being in a group setting where you feel safe and comfortable, people just want to see you get better,” he said. “You are seeing through a clear lens, and you are in a safe space. You feel comfortable to share and hear other stories. [You get] strength from other people.”
Bell said what he went through also gave him perspective and enabled him to encourage others to tell their stories.
“The biggest thing that I can say is that you are not alone,” he said. “You are not alone. Do not feel like you have to handle this all by yourself. For me, having a creative outlet is really a big one for me. if it’s not [for you], write in a journal. Get it off your chest. Get it out so that it is not inside anymore.”
Over the last few years, Bell has made headlines in several different ways, including a July 2021 case where he pleaded guilty to attempted child endangerment and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles.
MORE | Drake Bell pleads guilty to felony endangerment charge
The case stemmed from accusations from a woman who was 19 years old at the time the case went through the legal system.
However, that woman said Bell sent her graphic photos and “groomed” her since she was 12.
Bell addressed the situation when News4JAX asked.
“It is fairly simple,” Bell said. “Someone reached out to me on social media. I unfortunately responded. You have to be very careful of who you talk to. I suggest not doing it. I didn’t know who this person was or what age she was. I thought her social media presented her as being a lot older than she turned out to be. When I found out the age of the person, we stopped communication. I think that started to spiral into what it became. Unfortunately, it was something that I experienced. It had to go through. I had to learn from, and change my actions and behaviors in that situation and moved on.”
During sentencing in 2021, the woman said in a victim impact statement: “My life hasn’t been the same since I was 15. I think about these crimes every single day. I feel like I am in a constant dark place.”
The judge said Bell’s guilty plea involved serious allegations but did not involve sexual relations.
As a part of Bell’s guilty plea, he was sentenced to probation and community service.
Newsr4JAX asked Bell about what he would say to people who said they lost trust in him and if he felt that he owed it to them to try and regain their trust and respect.
“I just continue to move on and learn from experiences in my past,” he said. “Learn from my mistakes and triumphs. Move on, continue to try and change the wrong decisions that I’ve made and keep walking my path.”
MORE | Actor Drake Bell found safe after being declared missing
Bell started his professional music career at around 11 years old and recorded his first official album close to his 15th birthday.
“A lot of fans are now going back to the album and reading the lyrics that I wrote in that time when I was going through some of the worst moments of my life,” he said. “They are going back and reading those lyrics and listening and going like, ‘oh my gosh, now we get what he was talking about’ The first record, the lyrics were pretty heavy and dark. So they are going back to that.”
Bell said music has been the one thing he has been able to lean and depend on.
“Music has been everything for me,” he said. “[It has] helped me through everything. I am just so lucky that I picked up a guitar when I was a kid because it gave me this creative outlet to get whatever was going on inside off my chest and be able to write about everything. If you go to my song “I Kind of Relate,” that is just a great example of being able to really share everything that I have gone through. My ups, my downs, my dark periods, my mistakes, my triumphs, my good decisions, my bad decisions. There are literally lyrics in there. It is all about learning from the wrong decisions and the right decisions.”
Bell said he is doing more and more shows leading up to the release of his new album in October. After that, he said he is planning to go on tour.