Demi Lovato has revealed that her heroin dealer sexually assaulted her on the night of her 2018 overdose and says she lost her virginity to rape as a teen.
The actress and singer, 28, was the subject of a New York Times editorial on Tuesday, ahead of her upcoming YouTube documentary premiering next week.
The article describes some of the more harrowing content in the documentary, including how the drug dealer who gave her heroin on the night of her 2018 drug overdose ‘sexually assaulted her, then left her close to death.’
She also revealed that she had lost her virginity when she was raped aged just 15, as she was assaulted while she was ‘hooking up’ with her attacker – an actor – during her rise to fame as a Disney star in Camp Rock in 2008.
Seen on Instagram: Demi Lovato was the subject of a New York Times editorial on Tuesday, ahead of her upcoming YouTube documentary premiering next week
On the teen sexual assault, she said: ‘I lost my virginity in a rape. I called that person back a month later and tried to make it right by being in control, and all it did was just make me feel worse. We were hooking up…
‘I said, ‘Hey, this is not going any farther, I’m a virgin and I don’t want to lose it this way’… And that didn’t matter to them, they did it anyways…
‘I internalised it and I told myself it was my fault, because I still went in the room with him, I still hooked up with him.’
Demi then confirmed that her attacker was a fellow actor – although only described them as being in ‘a movie’, not in Camp Rock.
The article describes some of the more harrowing content in the documentary: Including how her drug dealer ‘sexually assaulted her’ on the night of her 2018 drug overdose; seen with Michael D. Ratner, Dancing with the Devil director and executive producer
She penned: ‘You know what, f**k it, I’m just gonna say it: my #MeToo story is me telling somebody that someone did this to me, and they never got in trouble for it. They never got taken out of the movie they were in.’
She admitted she was scared to speak out about what happened to her and admitted she was unsure whether she would be believed and reflected on Rihanna’s assault from her boyfriend Chris Brown and the leaked images of her bloodied face.
She said: ‘Honestly, ever since I watched Rihanna and her pictures get leaked after the Chris Brown incident, I was very uncomfortable with even more of my story playing out in the press and also people maybe not believe me.’
Shock: She also revealed that she had lost her virginity when she was raped aged just 15, as she was assaulted while she was ‘hooking up’ with her attacker – an actor – during her rise to fame as a Disney star in Camp Rock in 2008 (pictured in a promo shot from the movie)
Demi revealed the traumatic incident sparked her self-harm and eating disorder. She added: ‘Here was the thing. I was part of that Disney crowd that publicly said they were waiting till marriage…
‘Then I had to see that person all the time, and so I stopped eating and coped in other ways — cutting, throwing up, whatever. ‘My bulimia got so bad that I started throwing up blood for the first time.’
Also mentioned are some of the extreme health problems that Demi experienced as a result of that night, which were also shared in last month’s trailer for Dancing With The Devil, her upcoming four-part documentary.
Authentically herself: The Sorry Not Sorry songbird also discussed other areas of both her private and public life
Her overdose brought on a host of problems, including three strokes, a heart attack and organ failure, along with pneumonia, asphyxiation, brain damage and lasting vision problems that have made it impossible for her to drive.
However, she also discussed other areas of both her private and public life.
Notably, she said she feels like she ‘dodged a bullet’ by calling off her engagement with ex Max Ehrlich last September.
‘I feel like I dodged a bullet because I wouldn’t have been living my truth for the rest of my life had I confined myself into that box of heteronormativity and monogamy,’ Lovato said, again referencing her queer identity.
‘And it took getting that close to shake me up and be like, wow, you really got to live your life for who you really are.’
Notably: She said she feels like she ‘dodged a bullet’ by calling off her engagement with ex Max Ehrlich last September; seen together on Instagram last year
Additionally, more was shared about Demi’s friendship with both Ariana Grande, who will appear on her upcoming album, as well as their star manager Scooter Braun.
In a separate interview, Braun explained how Ariana was instrumental in getting her signed with him, at a time after her overdose when she wasn’t sure how to proceed in her career.
‘I saw that she was scared, like, no one’s going to take me on,’ Scooter told the Times of his initial meeting with Demi.
‘I asked Ariana’s opinion and she said, let me go to coffee with her. And by the time she got home, she texted me: You have to take her on, this is my friend. I want to know she’s safe.’
Dancing With The Devil, which comes just ahead of Lovato’s next album of the same name, premieres on YouTube on March 23rd.
Coming soon: Dancing With The Devil, which comes just ahead of Lovato’s next album of the same name, premieres on YouTube on March 23rd