Demi Lovato’s new look is causing some chatter in pop culture as many people worry about the drastic change. However, the singer is unphased and feels more powerful, having shed their hyper-femme image.
As a non-binary individual, self-image has always been a major point for the Heartbreak singer. Whereas they maintain their position as a human being – not a man or woman – people still view them through the female lens, and here’s how Demi feels about that.
Demi speaks candidly with their 123 million followers on their Instagram podcast #4DwithDemiLovato. Last year, they said, “I was so afraid at times of what my career would look like if I wasn’t that super sexy, hyper-feminine popstar.” The anxiety comes from expecting “women” to dress, look, and act a certain way. Those who defied the status quo received flak often, and Demi faced a lot of that in their career.
The pressure was too much for Demi until they came out as a non-binary person last year. Since then, they’ve become more empowered and “transparent.” They said, “Now that I’m living my truth, my art has just become that much greater because my art is a reflection of who I am.” In a continued monologue, they added, “So now that I’m able to be more transparent in the world about who I am, they can see my art better, and they can hear it better.” The focus shifted from their image to their craft until they debuted a shocking new look again in January.
Demi now spots a giant black tattoo on their half-shaved head and an upper ear piercing. The look garnered attention from fashion enthusiasts who defined it as bold self-expression. This look fits their gender-fluid personality better than their former hyper-femme style for the pop star. How does the singer-songwriter deal with old pictures of their former style?
“When I see older images of myself looking hyper-feminine, that maybe fans make into fan art, and they don’t mean anything by it, but it’s like, look at that fan art, and I think that’s not me. I don’t know who that person is, because the person I am today with short hair, and the person that I’ve been over the past year publicly, I mean that’s who I feel like I am,” they said at the 19th Represents Summit streamed four months ago.
