Looking back. Over the years, so many celebs have opened up about their experiences as child stars.
Keke Palmer, for one, got real about her experience growing up in the public eye. She claimed that as a kid in the industry “your emotions are always the last thing that people care about” during an April 2021 episode of InStyle‘s “Ladies First with Laura Brown” podcast.
“I think you get really quickly into being a people-pleaser and trying to be everything that everybody wants you to be. And so I think in a lot of that, you end up being misunderstood,” the True Jackson, VP alum added. “When I was at the ages of like 13, 14, 15, it was like, you could never see me without makeup. I was not playing around. But as I got older, I think I really just kind of got tired. It was tiring to me to keep on hiding my skin and to keep on doing that whole thing.”
When she grew up, Keke shared her ongoing acne struggles with fans in a candid Instagram post. “My acne has been so bad that people in my field offered to pay for me to get it fixed. I tried EVERYTHING,” the actress wrote in December 2020. “I’m posting this to say that it’s okay and we can help ourselves. My skin has made me sad many nights but I do not give up on myself.”
Camp Rock alum Alyson Stoner also revealed her experiences as a young actress in April 2021. The dancer and former Disney Channel star penned a letter, detailing their “harrowing” experience as a child star and sharing her struggles with “grief, trauma and stress.”
“I believe everyone deserves to feel safe, comfortable and confident in their mind and body, especially youth who are vulnerable with fewer tools to navigate daily life,” they wrote. “No matter what has happened to you, there is a way to reconnect with yourself and reclaim your story, your voice, and your authority as your own.”
Alyson added, “This is your first time reading my story, but it is our millionth time asking you to listen.”
Other notable names who’ve opened up about their past experiences growing up in the spotlight include Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez and more. Scroll through our gallery to read their quotes about being child stars.
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