Sometimes, when you are going through a dark time or a heavy situation, it's difficult to see or notice the people you are inspiring. That is the case for Demi Lovato, who despite dealing with depression, having gone through a lot of turmoil and tough times in her life, she continues to inspire millions of people around the world—including her own idol, Kelly Clarkson.
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The pair sat down for a conversation on the singer's talk show The Kelly Clarkson Show on Thursday, June 25, and they both swapped compliments and talked about how much each other's strength has inspired the other. The talk show host revealed that she has also dealt with depression, and thanked Demi for being so vocal and outspoken about dealing with her own mental health struggles.
Kelly opened up about her own struggles.
The talk show host started their conversation by thanking Demi for her openness, especially in regards to her mental health struggles. "I love how open you are about mental health because I have similar issues, and I've suffered from depression," Kelly told Demi. "I think a lot of people, especially in the creative world or just from childhood you've been trained to just keep going and you can handle it. Especially as a woman it's like, 'Don't let them see you sweat.' I just love that you're open about that because not everybody's as vulnerable being like that. And I think it's helpful for your fans."
Demi said Kelly was her "first idol."
"You were like the first idol that I ever had. I wouldn't be the artist or even the person that I am with being so outspoken and vulnerable and fearless if I hadn't had you to look up to, so I thank you for that," Demi told Kelly. "I looked at you as my idol growing up. You are fearless and courageous and real as f–k, you know? I love that about you. When I was younger I always thought to myself, 'If I make it, I want to be like her because she's real and she's genuine.'"
The singers both agreed that healing takes work.
The daytime talk show host thanked Demi for her comments but said that being "strong" isn't always easy and it is a daily effort. "It takes work. I think everybody looks at us, like even when you overcome something, they're like, 'OK, she's already overcome that.' I'm like, 'No, no, no that's a daily effort in trying to be positive,'" Kelly said. "That's not a given, like you're just over it and you went to some magic therapy session and it's over. I think that's a daily thing you work at and a daily thing that I work out."
Demi also spoke about being comfortable with her body image.
"I felt like I wasn't being authentic to people, because I'd been editing pictures," she said. "It didn't feel good because I was putting up something that wasn't real. I felt like I was catfishing everybody." She then decided to post the same photos from her vacation in Bora Bora, without editing, and she felt like she was taking the power back. "I need to change this, I need to change the narrative. I need to post something real," she said. "It just felt so good. I had a few crushes at the time and it was interesting to see that all of those crushes, they actually liked all of those pictures. They were the ones that I was trying to impress. I was trying to look hot and they liked it."
The singer also spoke about her social activism and is asking others to do the same.
She said she was angry and frustrated when she saw what was happening in the news, including with the shooting of jogger Ahmaud Arbery and the death of George Floyd. Demi has since been outspoken on social media in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, and is urging others to do the same. She says that now since she has tackled her own demons, she can now help others and be an ally. "The first step is educating ourselves. We have a lot of time on our hands right now, there is no reason why we shouldn't be watching these movies and absorbing all this information we can about what's going on in the world," she said. "Being silent and being not racist is not enough anymore."
