Actor and singer Joshua Bassett, who gained popularity for being the inspiration behind both Olivia Rodrigo’s “drivers license” and Sabrina Carpenter’s “because i liked a boy,” has opened up for the first time about his surprising faith journey.
The High School Musical: The Musical: The Series star, 23, who has talked openly about struggling with depression, anxiety and addiction issues, found faith last year. Bassett was baptized at Bethel Church in Redding, California, in February 2023. He shared the news online, tweeting, “The gospel is GOOD NEWS for all willing to love and obey Him who keeps your heart beating.”
His announcement was met with skepticism, as he had spent the prior months sharing the anxiety and depression he experienced after being scrutinized by Rodrigo’s and Carpenter’s fans for allegedly breaking the pop stars’ hearts. In a new conversation on “The Zach Sang Show,” Bassett shared that the mental health struggles he was experiencing, mixed with his addiction to psychedelics like mushrooms and ayahuasca, led him to one of his darkest moments. But it was there that he finally found God.
“I spent my entire life seeking truth, trying to find peace,” he said. “The only time I actually found peace was the moment I accepted Jesus.”
Bassett shared that while his family had attended church when he was younger, he never took his faith seriously.
“I thought my family was dumb,” Bassett said. “I thought any Christian was dumb. I thought they were so wrong. And then I had an encounter with the actual living God.”
Since embracing his faith, Bassett has used his platform and his music to share the peace he’s now found in Jesus.
“The very fact that I am here before you talking about Jesus and believe in Jesus is a testament to the fact that there might be something there because I was so vehemently opposed,” Bassett said during the interview. “I mean, I mocked God on this couch.”
Bassett had previously been open about his struggles with anxiety, depression as well as the trauma of being sexually abused as a child and teen. These struggles intensified after a major health crisis when he was hospitalized with septic shock. He told People that post-hospitalization, he faced daily panic attacks and severe depression.
Part of Bassett’s change in faith came from an ayahuasca experience where he felt “spiritually naked” and confronted the darkness within himself. He described a vision of descending into hell and being tormented by demons until he saw a vision of Jesus in the sky, which brought him a mix of relief and terror.
In the six months after those visions, Bassett struggled deeply, finding no peace and worsening his addictions. It wasn’t until a moment of meditation that he felt the Holy Spirit and realized his need for Jesus. He called his father, who had been praying for him, and his father walked him through a prayer of repentance.
“I was on a path of destruction,” he said. “And it is only by the grace of God that I stand before you today.”
You can watch the full interview below:
