Demi Lovato brought the audience and viewers to tears when she debuted her emotional new song, “Anyone,” at the 2020 Grammy Awards on Jan. 26 — including Selena Gomez. “I wish there were words to describe how beautiful, inspirational, and DESERVED this moment was,” Selena gushed on Instagram, along with a photo of Demi performing. “Demi I’m so happy for you. Thank you for your courage and bravery.” Demi wrote “Anyone” just days before she nearly died of a drug overdose in 2018, and it’s an obvious cry for help, with lyrics like, “Nobody’s listening to me,” and “I feel stupid when I pray, so why am I praying anyway?” The Grammys were Demi’s first performance since the overdose, and she sounded absolutely incredible.
Seeing Selena’s public show of support for Demi was refreshing for fans, who are never quite sure where these two stand. The pair’s friendship has gone through lots of ups and downs over the years. They began drifting apart when Selena got close to Taylor Swift in 2009 — in Jan. 2010, paparazzi asked Demi how Selena was doing, and she shadily responded, “Ask Taylor.” They reconnected after Demi went into treatment later that year, and Selena reached out to support her. However, they appeared to eventually have another falling out, as Demi unfollowed Selena on social media in 2014.
“I think it’s just one of those things where people change and people grow apart,” she explained to Andy Cohn on Watch What Happens Live at the time. However, the two delighted fans by reuniting for red carpet photos at the InStyle Awards in 2017.
Selena did not publicly speak out about Demi’s overdose when the tragic incident happened, but in Sept. 2018, she confirmed that she had spoken to her longtime friend — they starred on Barney together as kids — in private. “I reached out personally,” Selena admitted to Elle. “I didn’t do a public thing. I didn’t want to. I love her. I’ve known her since I was seven. So, that’s what I’ll say.” Clearly, they’ve been able to once again put their issues behind them to have a friendly relationship these days!