Demi Lovato has admitted her relationship with Wilmer Valderrama was ‘not ok’.
The American singer, 33, kickstarted her career as a child star on Barney & Friends, going on to appear in the Camp Rock films alongside the Jonas Brothers, before releasing her debut album Don’t Forget in 2008.
She’s since gone on to release eight more albums, acted as a judge on The X Factor and also been the focus of three documentaries which detailed her struggles with an eating disorder, substance abuse and self-harm.
In a recent interview Demi looked back on her decades in the public eye, whilst also reflecting on a relationship that she now considers to have been inappropriate.
When she was just 18, Demi began dating That 70s Show star Wilmer, who was 29 at the time.
The couple went on to date for six years, breaking up in 2016. Announcing their split, they released a joint statement, which read: ‘This was an incredibly difficult decision for both of us, but we have realized more than anything that we are better as friends. We will always be supportive of one another. Thank you to everyone who has offered us kindness and support over the years.’
However, Demi has now connected with fellow former child star Keke Palmer over the relationships they had in their teens, with the pair sharing that they felt grown-up at the time, but now reconsidered their past relationships to be problematic.
With Demi as the guest on her Baby, This Is Keke Palmer podcast, the 32-year-old host said: ‘I feel like people don’t understand that that’s what we were dealing with, you know? I found myself dating. I’m 15. Why is my boyfriend 20?’
Demi replied: ‘Why was my boyfriend 30? You know what I’m saying? But then you look back in hindsight. When I turned 30, I was like, that’s not OK.’
Keke then added: ‘Girl, the moment when you realise, 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 because you realise you were taken advantage of. “Oh, I was being exploited”.’
She went on: ‘That was very difficult for me ‘cause at 15 I’m thinking my boyfriend’s older because I’m doing an older job, and I’m doing a bunch of things, and this is the way that it is, and it seemed normal in my mind.”
Demi agreed: ‘Especially if you’re an older soul, too. Especially if you’re mature for your age.’
The singer also went on to mention how she once 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.
Demi is now married to songwriter Jordan ‘Jutes’ Lutes, with the couple tying the knot in May last year.
Meanwhile Wilmer had previously dated Mandy Moore, who is four years younger than him, when she was 15. The couple dated for around two years.
He then went on to date Lindsay Lohan for around six months. She was 18 at the time while he was 24.
After he and Demi broke up, Wilmer became engaged to Amanda Pacheco in 2020. They’ve since welcomed two children together.
At the time of their engagement, Demi made it clear she was still on good terms with her ex – who helped her following a drug overdose in 2018.
Speaking to Harper’s Bazaar in 2020, she explained: ‘I’m really happy for him and I wish him nothing but the best, but we’re not in each other’s lives [and] haven’t spoken in a long time. But I think I needed that, because I needed to learn to be okay on my own.’
She continued: ’When you get into a relationship with somebody at that young of an age and then you spend six years with somebody, you don’t really get to learn about yourself.’
Although Demi is currently gearing up to head out on tour again, last month she announced the cancellation of five concerts to allow herself more time to ‘rest and rehearse’.
Late last year she released her It’s Not That Deep album and had been set to kick off its associated tour in Orlando, Florida, on April 10.
However posting a lengthy statement on social media, she addressed fans directly and wrote: ‘My Lovatics – I am so excited to get back on stage this year and visit you in as many cities as I can. While starting to prepare for the tour, I realised that I have overextended what may be possible.
‘To protect my health and ensure I can give you my all at each show, I need to build in more time to rest and rehearse and ultimately adjust to a schedule with some more time off that will allow me to handle the entire run of the tour.’
She then went on to share that shows in Charlotte, Nashville, Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Denver would not be going ahead.
Demi’s tour is now set to run from April 13 until May 12, during which she will play shows across 17 US cities, as well as a show in Toronto. The tour will wrap up in Houston, Texas.
Metro has contacted representatives for Wilmer Valderrama for comment.
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