Selena Gomez Confesses Her Past Relationships Have Been ‘Cursed’: I Never ‘Really Felt Equal’

Selena Gomez chatted with Vogue Australia in a vulnerable new profile, for which she reflected on past relationships and feeling ‘less than’ when it came to romances in the public eye at such a young age. 

Selena Gomez ushered in her Rare era at the start of 2020 with the release of her lauded album of the same name. Recently, the singer and actress, 28, revealed why the word, which is named for her Rare Beauty line and is tattooed on her neck, holds such significance. “I think most of my experiences in relationships have been cursed,” she shared with Vogue Australia in a vulnerable new profile.

“I’ve been way too young to be exposed to certain things when I was in relationships. I guess I needed to find what was that word for me, because I felt so less than in past relationships, and never really felt equal,” she further explained. Selena’s love life has been scrutinized and documented by the media ever since her rise to fame on the Disney Channel original series Wizards of Waverly Place.

Longtime fans of the star will recall that she had a notable, high-profile relationship with singer Justin Bieber throughout much of the 2010s. Selena also dated The Weeknd for a time in 2017, as well. For Selena, hearing the word “rare” said out loud helped her realize how she could define a new phase of her life. “And so that word to me – when I first heard it [used in the single Rare] with Nolan [Lambroza], one of the writers, I just said this is what I want to feel about myself,” she explained.

“So it wasn’t even necessarily like: ‘Oh, I feel that way, let me sing it.’ It was almost like: ‘Actually, I need to feel that way about myself.’” Rare has been noted by fans and critics as one of Selena’s most vulnerable albums. Among her singles from the album, fans noted the emotional ballad “Lose You To Love Me.”

A number of longtime admirers of the singer have speculated whether or not the song is about her former partner, Justin Bieber. Selena has alluded to her past romance when discussing the lyrics of the ballad, and has also subtly indicated that it may have inspired the song. But with so much ahead of her, including a thriving career and more, Selena is poised to continue embracing her Rare era, and fans cannot wait to watch it unfold.