The 'Prioritise Pleasure' singer admits she struggles to navigate fame and the pressure that comes with it as she recalls being called 'fat' after a TV performance.
- Jul 23, 2023
AceShowbiz - Self Esteem struggled with a mental health crisis after shooting to fame. The 36-year-old pop star - real name Rebecca Taylor - has opened up she struggled to cope after being thrust into the spotlight last year when her album "Prioritise Pleasure" was nominated for the Mercury Prize and she was terrified of body-shaming trolls commenting on her appearance.
"My mental health went entirely. I couldn't cope with being ... perceived at all. There were so many headlines and I was just so scared about my appearance being commented on," she explained to The Times Magazine.
"Because my worst fear is people on the internet calling me fat. It's just hell. I can't shut it out. Any smart thing I've said is negated if someone calls me that," she added of her celebrity status, "It's such b*******. I don't want fame because I'm so scared of it."
The singer's worst fears were realised earlier this year when she performed on American TV's "The Late Late Show with James Corden" in January and found herself being targeted by trolls.
She later called them out in a series of posts on Twitter, writing, "American people are calling me fat on the internet. Which is whatever but I really do feel like it's a time warp here [in the US] in terms of cultural societal expectations of femininity. I've struggled with disordered eating my whole life and I cba [can't be a****] to feel s**** anymore about a body that is currently working perfectly well."
Self Esteem added, "I am no less talented or excellent because I'm heavier than a Hadid etc. I may gain or lose weight but ... I dream of a day where it isn't a talking point. The thing is, it's not hard to get really thin. It just makes life something a lot less lovely. My inner wiring certainly sees my reflection as something that needs 'sorting' but then I remember the lovely vs less lovely toss up and get on with my day (sic)."
