Yahoo Lifestyle "It Was So Overwhelming": Selena Gomez Shared Her Uncomfortable Reaction To Meeting A Young Fan Dressed Exactly Like Her
Selena Gomez recalled the immense pressure she felt to be a role model as a teenager.
Selena got started on Barney & Friends before finding fame at 15 on Wizards of Waverly Place. Her role as Alex Russo made her a teen icon and propelled her acting and singing career.
But with that came the responsibility of being a role model to her young adoring fans — and in a new interview, Selena shared the "overwhelming" moment where that first clicked for her.
"I remember when I realized that that was coming into play," she told the Hollywood Reporter of her influence. "We’d do live tapings every Friday for Wizards, and they were my favorite part. And we’d meet everybody after the taping, and this little girl came up to me, and she had a picture of me from a J-14 magazine in this Abercrombie sweater, jeans, and flats. She showed me the picture, and she goes, 'I bought it.'"
Selena, 32, estimates being 16 at the time and recalled feeling instantly "overwhelmed."
"I looked at her, and [she was wearing the same outfit]," she remembered. "I had to have been 16, and she was like 12, and I remember thinking, 'Oh my gosh.'"
"It may sound minute, but it was so overwhelming," Selena admitted. "So, I think I put the pressure on myself more than anybody else put it on me, and it’s because I was so scared of making a mistake because suddenly it wasn’t about me. It was about, well, what would people say or think?"
Selena said that's why her documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me was so important.
Released in 2022, the documentary saw Selena opening up on topics like her struggle with fame, her lupus diagnosis, and living with bipolar disorder like never before.
"The documentary was me finally taking a breath and saying, 'OK, so everything I’ve been trying to be this whole time, I’m a little exhausted and here’s why,'" she shared. "And it was a nice release, but I don’t want people to think that’s where I am anymore. I was very happy to share my story, but I want to make it crystal clear that that was a capsule of a time in my life and I truly believe I won’t be there again because I am properly medicated and I’m seeing people and I’m taking care of myself."
Selena also said she maintains "a private life" — save for the occasional outing or post with her boyfriend Benny Blanco. When asked why she has still "allowed the world" in on their relationship, Selena said, "I guess this is the safest I’ve ever felt in one, and I see a future with this person."
She also said the media is less invasive when she's forthcoming. "When you put a little bit out there, people are not as hungry to hunt you down," she said. "Like, if they hear something, they’re going to, but if you’re like, 'I did it,' they’re like, 'Oh, well there’s you, just going to Sushi Park.' But there’s so much of my relationship people don’t see, that’s just mine."
Read the full interview here and share your thoughts on Selena's comments below.
