Demi Lovato and Keke Palmer Reflect on Their Inappropriate Age-Gap Relationships as Teens: “I Was Being Exploited”

Lovato and Palmer started working on Disney Channel and Nickelodeon, respectively, as teenagers. Demi Lovato and Keke Palmer Amy Sussman/Getty Images; Julian Hamilton/FilmMagic Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment Demi Lovato and Keke Palmer are realizing just how much they have in common as fellow child stars, including some not-too-positive experiences. During a recent conversation on the Baby, It’s Keke Palmer podcast, the two stars reflected on the challenges of growing up in the entertainment industry at a young age. Palmer led the Nickelodeon sitcom True Jackson, VP as a teen, and Lovato starred in the Camp Rock movies on Disney Channel and the sitcom Sonny with a Chance. “I became the breadwinner of my family just by proxy. You know what I mean? It’s just what happened,” Palmer recalled. “They had to help with my career and we’re seeing money that we never had seen. That stress for me, especially not being able to process it, was a big triggering point. And then never wanting to be sad or make anybody feel bad about it because I don’t want them to be stressed. And then not having a lot of time to have fun and be a kid.” Related Stories TV Demi Lovato to Perform at GLAAD Awards, 'Heated Rivalry' Cast and Creatives Confirmed to Attend TV 'The 'Burbs' Star Paula Pell Is In Her Prime Lovato knew exactly where The ‘Burbs actress was coming from. “I actually had this mantra that was like, if you’re going to work me like an adult, I’m going to party like an adult. And I got into some bad stuff at a young age,” she said, referring to her past struggle with substance abuse. Despite being teens, they both agreed that other people their age couldn’t relate to their lifestyle and working adult hours, leading them to seek connection with people much older. “I found myself dating. I’m 15, why was my boyfriend 20?” Palmer recounted. “We were trying to find outlets, though, and a way to process this.” Lovato replied, “Why was my boyfriend 30? … Nobody our age could understand. But then you look back in hindsight — when I turned 30, I was like, ‘That’s not OK.'” Palmer remembered thinking these age-gap relationships were “normal in my mind” at the time because “you’re mature for your age,” but now realizes how inappropriate they were. “The moment when you realize, and you get to the age of a lot of people that were around you and doing stuff, it’s almost a mental break that can happen,” she said. “Because you realize, ‘You were taking advantage of me.’ ‘Oh, I was being exploited.’ At 15, I’m thinking, ‘My boyfriend’s older, because I’m doing an older job … This is the way it is.’ It seemed normal in my mind.” The Nope actress later shouted out Hilary Duff’s new song, “Mature,” from her recently released album, Luck … or Something. “I love the Hilary Duff song that she came out with,” Palmer said. “It’s like, ‘Oh, shit, we all had the same damn life.’ People kept telling us, ‘You’re so mature for your age!’” Duff, who also starred on Disney Channel growing up in Lizzie McGuire, recently told Glamour that her track “Mature” was “about a relationship that I had … with someone older than me, and that was not illegal, but inappropriate when you have this much time removed from it.” Lovato related to Duff’s song, telling Palmer that she also wrote a single, titled “29,” about turning the age of her ex-boyfriend at the time they started dating when she was a teen. It was released in 2022. Lovato is now married to songwriter Jordan “Jutes” Lutes. Read More About: demi lovato Disney Channel KeKe Palmer Nickelodeon THR Newsletters Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day Subscribe Sign Up More from The Hollywood Reporter Live Feed Jessica Belkin Boards ‘Baywatch’ Reboot