As a university student who has never visited Glastonbury Festival, I’m astonished by the achievements of 19-year-old superstar Billie Eilish – who will be the youngest solo artist to ever headline the event in 2022.
While this is no doubt a testament to the hard work of the young artist, is the tender age of 19 too young to perform to a crowd of 200,000 people?
Looking back, the celebrities who were forced into the spotlight in their teens have often reported worse mental health as they've grown up due to the constant pressure during their youth.
Take Demi Lovato – they were just seven years old when their childhood acting career began. Since then, they have admitted they would not want to relive their youth in the spotlight. They said you have to find your identity incredibly fast when the whole world is watching you.
Drew Barrymore, who also became famous at the age of seven after her debut in the Hollywood classic E.T., said to People Magazine in 1989: "One day I was a little girl, the next I was being mobbed by people who wanted my autograph."
For someone whose brain hasn’t fully developed yet, these experiences must be unimaginably daunting.
The pressures of touring and performing can often be too overwhelming for the body and mind of an adult, never mind a teen. Music industry expert Dave Brooks said ‘it’s really hard to tour’, especially as it requires artists to be away from family, often suffer from jet lag, and constantly please thousands of fans. The impact of this would take its toll on anyone, let alone a teenager.
The recent Netflix documentary Britney vs Spears makes it clear just how much of a negative impact the pressure from the media and touring can having on a celebrity's mental health.
From such a young age, Britney was forced into stardom. The strain of constantly touring led her health to decline and the popular singer had to spend time in mental institutions.
Our worries may be unwarranted though, since Billie herself has not expressed fear at the pressures of being a young star, and instead, she embraces its benefits.
In a recent interview, she said she was glad she became famous young, as this means people cannot dig up dirt from her younger years. She even confidently asserted how she thinks she handles fame better than her 24-year-old co-writer and brother Finneas, who she predicts would not be able to handle her fame if he were in her position.
Whether or not we agree with Billie performing at such a young age, the most important thing is that she looks after herself and is not afraid to take a break from the harsh reality of being in the spotlight.
Edited by Jemma Snowdon
Comments