Demi Lovato is working hard at loving herself, no matter what the haters have to say.
The 25-year-old “Confident” singer has been determined to break free from the need to be perfect recently, opening up on Instagram about her mission to practice self-love in 2018.
That mission, it turns out, comes with a slew of swimsuit pictures — which comedian Ellen DeGeneres couldn’t help but point out during Lovato’s visit to her show Monday.
“I’ve been working on myself for the past year, more so than I’ve ever worked on myself,” Lovato explained on her Ellen DeGeneres Show appearance. “I’ve really surrendered to the process of just learning to love yourself, and I feel like it shows through my pictures. I post more bathing suit pictures online. I want to show my fans that it’s possible that they can get to that self-love too.”
Part of building that confidence means shrugging off the haters, who inevitably flood any celebrity Instagram post these days with their criticism.
“I’ve taken away the power from the negative comments and the haters by not listening to them and if I do see it, I just feel sorry for them, because who leaves a negative comment on somebody’s profile on the internet?” Lovato said. “You have to be kind of sad to do that. I’ve taken away the power, and it just feels great.”
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One picture of Lovato’s in particular had people talking — a swimsuit shot Lovato shared on Jan. 4.
Lovato herself was hesitant about the pic at first but posted it anyway.
“I didn’t love my legs in it,” she told DeGeneres. “You know every time you look at a picture of yourself you critique it. I’m a perfectionist. I decided to post it anyway because I thought, ‘You know what, it’s me, it’s who I am and I love my body, so I’m just going to post it.’ ”
“I posted it because I look so happy,” Lovato continued. “That’s what I love about that picture.”
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Lovato has a long history of fighting back against haters. In fact, it was the whole focus of her unapologetic performance of her single “Sorry Not Sorry” at the 2017 American Music Awards in November.
The star began the set in the audience, telling the star-studded crowd, “There’s so much hate in this world,” as mean tweets — from “I hate you” to “fat” — flashed on screens over the stage. “We have to rise above. And never say sorry,” she added.
Then, in typical Demi-fashion, she belted the gospel-tinged anthem with volume and confidence, taking the stage in a glittering bodysuit while backed by a slew of backup dancers.
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Meanwhile, Lovato’s new string of swimsuit selfies comes months after she spoke out about her eating disorder battle in her acclaimed YouTube documentary, Simply Complicated.
Though Lovato has abstained from drugs and alcohol for nearly six years, she admitted in the film she has yet to effectively treat her eating disorder. “Food is still the biggest challenge in my life,” she said, explaining she had recently relapsed and purged.
“I don’t want to give it the power that it controls my every thought but it’s something that I’m constantly thinking about,” Lovato added. “Body image, what I wish I could be eating, what I wish I could be eating next, what I wish I didn’t eat, you know it’s just constant. I get envious towards people who don’t struggle with an eating disorder because I think my life would be so much easier.”