Demi Lovato: You can’t please everyone
She's only 20, but ex-Disney star Demi Lovato has battled bulimia, bipolar disorder, self injury, and a drug and alcohol habit to emerge a strong, radiant young woman who is a role-model of young girls all around the world.
"When it comes to people scrutinising what I do, well I think that you can't please everybody and if you're pleasing everybody then there's something wrong because it's not really genuine," quipped the curvy star when asked about where she gets her confidence under all that limelight.
"If I'm myself and I enjoy the clothes that I'm wearing or what size my eyebrows are, then you know, whatever. I'm doing my own thing so if people like it, great!"
Lovato was in Singapore on Monday for a one night only performance at the Hard Rock Hotel's Coliseum and looked radiant in a funky geometric print dress and a denim jacket.
Sporting a short, wavy new hairstyle, the X-factor judge exuded confidence and radiance belying her girlish voice, tackling questions about her music, her inspirations and her transition from tweeny-bopper to serious pop artiste with ease - a far cry from her days as an unstable, depressed tween star who would cut herself out of stress.
It is, therefore, an especially poignant moment when Lovato is asked what she would tell her troubled 15-year-old self.
"I'd tell her, your life is about to get really crazy. I'd tell her that she is beautiful and she shouldn't change for anybody, and that she's loved," said Demi after a thoughtful pause.
What keeps her so grounded and not following the path of self-destruction so many other childstars have taken and never returned?
"In this industry, a lot of people tell you yes, yes, yes and nobody will stand up to you and tell you you're doing something wrong because they don't want to get fired," said Lovato.
"I don't have people like that around me. I have friends who have my best interests at heart and I spend a lot of time with my family."
Her younger sister, in particular, is a strong motivating force for Lovato to continue her campaign against bullying and publicly encouraging young girls with body and image insecurities to break out of their shell and love themselves.
"My family has been a big inspiration to me, especially my little sister. She's my baby sister and I just want to protect her from everything," said Lovato, whose voice turned emotional.
"When I speak up about my issues I want to make sure I set a place where girls know they can talk about it, and don't have to struggle about it anymore."
Lovato also seemed to be as focused on her music as she is on her mission to empower her young fans - she has no plans to dabble in anything unrelated to music, including acting.
"My music is my message and my platform," said Lovato, who was first propelled to international fame with her role in hit Disney musical-movie, Camp Rock.
"The thing with acting is, with music I get to create and I get to do my own thing. With movies and TV, aside from X-factor I have to play someone else and that's something I haven't really been interested in that lately," she said firmly.
"What's working for me now is focusing on one career at a time."
This strategy clearly seems to be working for Lovato - her hugely popular single, Heart Attack, was leaked a week before it's official release and immediately became a hit on radio.
"None of us were expecting the success that it got so quickly. It had no promotion," said Lovato.
She enthused about her upcoming album, describing it as "everything that I am, and everything that I've ever done, just ten times better."
"I'm very excited about it, there are so many really great pop songs and there are other songs which are a bit heavier, I'm opening up and talking about things I've never talked about before. I'm really excited."
Fans attending her one-night only showcase on Monday night will be pysched to know that the bubbly Lovato is as excited about her first time here in Singapore as they are.
"I'm excited to see what the audience is like," said Lovato.
Borrowing a newly-learned Singlish phrase from the press conference host, local DJ Divian Nair, Lovato tried to convey exactly how enthusiastic she was.
"I'm feeling shiok right now!"
Watch Demi Lovato's "Heart Attack" below:
