US singer Demi Lovato revealed she was raped as a virgin during her teenage years as a Disney Channel actress and pop star, in a tell-all documentary that opened the online South By Southwest festival Tuesday.
"Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil," a YouTube Originals series, centers on Lovato's notorious 2018 fentanyl overdose that caused her brain damage and partial blindness, and her ongoing battles with addiction.
The four episodes, presented as the opening night film of a SXSW forced online by the pandemic, also contained new details of sexual assaults suffered by Lovato, including an attack on the night of her overdose.
"I know what I'm about to say is going to shock people too. But when I was a teenager I was in a very similar situation I lost my virginity in a rape," says Lovato.
"We were hooking up but I said, 'Hey, this is not going any further. I'm a virgin and I don't want to lose it this way,'" she recounts.
"And that didn't matter to them they did it anyways."
Lovato, now 28, does not name her attacker, but says the rape happened when "I was part of that Disney crowd," and that she "had to see this person all the time" following the assault.
Dubbing the incident "my #MeToo story," Lovato says she reported the attacker but "they never got in trouble for it -- they never got taken out of the movie they were in."
Lovato shot to fame with the Disney Channel movie "Camp Rock," filmed when she was 15.
She has long spoken of her struggles with depression, eating disorders and addiction, belying her happy persona as a smiling star of the children's show "Barney and Friends."
In the documentary, which features input from Elton John, music mogul Scooter Braun and actor Will Ferrell, Lovato says quitting cold turkey has proven not to work for her, and she now allows herself to smoke marijuana and drink in moderation.
Her 2018 overdose prompted a flurry of statements of solidarity from fellow stars who praised her personality -- although the attention also triggered a backlash by social media users, who noted that many non-celebrities suffer from drugs with little fanfare.
SXSW Online 2021 opened earlier Tuesday with a virtual performance from Janelle Monae before a keynote talk with Stacey Abrams, the former Georgia lawmaker credited with recent key Democratic victories in the state.
The film, television, music and technology conference runs until Saturday.
ETX Studio
Wed Mar 17 2021
A tell-all documentary about Demi Lovato opened the online South By Southwest festival Tuesday. ETXSTUDIO
Hulu Perak daerah terbaharu dilanda banjir kilat
Banjir kilat berlaku disebabkan hujan lebat berterusan selama dua jam di sekitar Gerik.
Kejayaan pembangunan Sabah jadi kayu ukur pada PRN, PRU16 - Rafizi
Rafizi berkata kerjasama antara parti adalah perkara yang terus dibincangkan dalam kerangka semangat Kerajaan Perpaduan.
88 badan pensijilan halal luar negara dapat pengiktirafan JAKIM
Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (JAKIM) telah memberikan pengiktirafan kepada 88 badan pensijilan halal luar negara setakat Mei tahun ini.
eWarga Emas bentuk sistem penyampaian perkhidmatan berkesan, bersepadu - Noraini
Portal sistem warga emas (eWarga Emas) dibangunkan bagi membentuk sistem penyampaian perkhidmatan warga emas yang berkesan dan bersepadu.
MITRA lulus lebih RM95 juta untuk 11 program masyarakat India
Kesemua program yang dalam pelaksanaan itu memberi tumpuan kepada usaha memperkasakan sosioekonomi komuniti India dalam negara.
Kestabilan sosiopolitik Sabah bolehkan agihan ekonomi saksama - Juhar
Smber daya, kekayaan alam semula jadi dan potensi ekonomi dalam masyarakat dapat dibahagi dengan cara memberi peluang sama kepada rakyat.
Kenanga jangka OPR stabil 3.0 peratus pada 2025
Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd menjangka Kadar Dasar Semalaman (OPR) kekal stabil pada 3.0 peratus sepanjang 2025.
Johor sasar jumlah ternakan cecah 200,000 ekor pada 2027
Johor menyasarkan jumlah ternakan di negeri ini mencapai hingga 200,000 ekor pada 2027 setelah berjaya mencapai jumlah pengeluaran ternakan sebanyak 152,000 ekor hingga bulan lepas.
Hargai warga emas melalui penjagaan, hormat dan penglibatan - Lee Lam Thye
Lee Lam Thye menekankan keperluan mendesak untuk menghargai warga emas melalui penjagaan, hormat, dan penglibatan yang lebih baik.
Malaysia perlu bersedia penuhi keperluan TBB yang semakin meningkat - Fadillah
Keperluan tenaga boleh baharu (TBB) di negara ini semakin meningkat seiring dengan keyakinan pelabur asing khususnya untuk mewujudkan pusat-pusat data.
Dah tak larat, penyanyi Demi Lovato umum henti adakan konsert jelajah
Konsert jelajah tersebut sudah berlangsung selama sebulan, dan Lovato kini perlu menghabiskan siri terakhir di Amerika Syarikat.
Hanya bertahan dua bulan, Demi Lovato dan Max Ehrich putus tunang
Penyanyi dan pelakon popular, Demi Lovato mengesahkan bahawa dia dan tunangnya mengambil keputusan untuk membatalkan perkahwinan mereka serta berpisah secara rasmi.
Demi Lovato, rakan-rakan Glee harap Naya Rivera ditemui dengan selamat
Kehilangan pelakon siri muzikal Glee, Naya Rivera, masih lagi menjadi tanda tanya.
Demi Lovato beremosi sampaikan lagu "Anyone" di Anugerah Grammy
Penampilan Demi Lovato kali ini dilihat sangat beremosi dengan menyanyikan single terbaharunya yang bertajuk Anyone.
Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas berbalah punca tidak dijemput ke majlis perkahwinan
Demi Lovato dikatakan sedih apabila dia tidak dijemput ke majlis perkahwinan diantara Nick Jonas dan juga Priyanka Chopra.
Demi Lovato sesali tindakan hampir putus nyawa
Baru-baru ini, tular berita mengenai penyanyi terkenal Hollywood, Demi Lovato yang dimasukkan ke hospital akibat penyalahgunaan dadah.
'Overdose' dadah? Penyanyi genit Demi Lovato dikejarkan ke hospital
Penyanyi Demi Lovato dimasukkan ke hospital di Los Angeles disebabkan pengambilan dadah jenis heroin secara berlebihan.
#FreeKesha: 'Dia banyak duit, bolehlah...' sindir Demi Lovato kepada Swift
Demi Lovato menyifatkan tindakan Taylor Swift sebagai biasa-biasa sahaja, memandangkan Swift berkemampuan dan punya wang yang banyak.
Demi Lovato tinggalkan X-Factor
Demi Lovato mengundurkan diri daripada X Factor setelah menajdi juri dan mentor selama dua musim.
Kehangatan "Twin Towers At Live 2013"
Konsert "Twin Towers At Live 2013" membuka tirai dengan penuh kehangatan di menara berkembar KLCC sempena Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix buat tahun ketiga pada Jumaat.