Demi Lovato knows all too well the struggles of early fame and doesn’t want her future children to experience those.
When asked what she would do if her future children wanted to follow in her footsteps, Lovato told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview published on Wednesday that she’d prepare them for it — but only after they turn 18.
“Not because I don’t believe in you or love you or want you to be happy, but because I want you to have a childhood, the childhood that I didn’t have,” she said.
At 15, Lovato shot to childhood stardom after starring in Disney’s “Camp Rock” in 2008.
“I was filled with gratitude, and there was this sense of wonder and excitement,” she said. “It was very much the honeymoon phase of my career, right before the train got moving in a way where I couldn’t pump the brakes.”
Lovato, 31, went on to face the struggles of early stardom, from addiction to eating disorders. “I didn’t realize that child stardom could be traumatic — and it isn’t traumatic for everyone, but for me, it was,” she said.
Lovato added that she wants her future child to have a “backup plan.”
“[It’s] something I wish I’d done because sometimes I think it’s time for me to move on, but I’m in this weird position in my career because I still rely on music for my income,” said Lovato, who, like other Disney stars — including Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus — had transitioned to a career in music.
The importance of backup plans
Lovato’s comments come as more Gen Z workers quit their jobs without backup plans. In 2023, management consulting firm Oliver Wyman spent two years studying more than 10,000 Gen Zers across the US and UK. The study found that this generation was more likely than other generations to quit unfulfilling jobs — even without having other jobs lined up.
Basant Shenouda, 27, a LinkedIn creator, previously told Business Insider that she left her toxic job less than a year in to take care of her mental health. Although she didn’t regret her decision, she had left during a bad job market, which caused her stress. She advised others to consider their financials and assess their risks before quitting without a backup plan.
Similarly, Amber Smith, who left her corporate job to become a reseller and content creator, told BI that she quit because she wasn’t happy. Smith, 27, said having a budget and a backup plan was important. If her self-employment did not work out, she planned to become a waitress or a bartender.
It’s important to be well-prepared before quitting, she said. “Have a good idea of your expenses and your income so that you are truly prepared so that you don’t find yourself having to go back to that job before you want to, if ever.”
A representative for Lovato did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent outside regular business hours.
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