Classic crossover prodigy Jackie Evancho first attracted international attention at the age of 10, when she competed for the american talents Season 5. She became an instant sensation, with her holiday EP O night of fate It made her the #1 best-selling female artist of 2010, the 10th youngest artist in Billboard history, and the youngest solo artist ever to go platinum in the US. However, as I matured in the glare of the public spotlight, I struggled, both personally and professionally, with developing an eating disorder at age 15.
While the opera/pop singer tells Yahoo Entertainment that her physical recovery is still in progress, it appears that Evancho, now 22, is finding her voice — and part of that process interprets the songs of one of her childhood major influences, Joni Mitchell, on her album. beautiful new time circle From September 9.
Evancho explains that her personal ordeal did not affect Mitchell’s “story songs,” which she was drawn to when compiling the playlist. “Honestly, by the time I decided to make the album and pick the songs…the painful stuff, I suppress that a lot, and it wasn’t even in the front of my head,” she says. However, making the album helped her recover for the past two years.
“I think the thing that really broke it for me was in 2020,” Evancho reflects, speaking of anorexia. “I kind of had a break - like a hijack, somehow. And I was a nervous wreck. I was shivering the whole time. I couldn’t keep anything in my stomach, just nausea and panic. And that started the whole journey of going to outpatients or inpatients and receiving The cure from all this stuff that was piling up that I was just ignoring. And after I got out, I was like, ‘Look, I can’t keep living like this.’ I’m not the same person I was when I was 10. And I can’t keep pretending, because it makes me sick. So, I kind of said, for lack of better wording, “Rip. I’ll be myself. I’m going in there. And if people don’t like me, they don’t like me. I can’t please everyone, but I can be myself because there’s no way I feel like.” Ashamed at the end of the day.If I could say to myself, “Well, at least I was honest.”
While November 2020 was the breaking point for Evancho, she said her anorexia has been “slowing in since I was 15”. At that time, she was evolving from a wonderful Christmas angel who won the hearts of millions AGT Viewers became a mature singer and songwriter. “I know I was at a point where I became a woman and wanted to be this specific version of myself, and I would say a lot of my eating problems come from the pressure I put on myself — not the pressures of society, not ‘anyone else is putting them on me,’” she explains. it comes from MyselfBecause I’m a perfectionist and hold myself to an impossible standard. And so, one day, I looked in the mirror and said, “That’s not what I want to look like.” I started eating healthy food and exercising in a healthy way, but after that I didn’t see anything or any results. And so this kind of escalation and snowflake escalated to where I am now. It was getting worse and worse and worse every year, because at that point I wasn’t able to see myself. I couldn’t see the real reflection or what I was actually looking like.
“And then it took this ‘snap’ for people to really see how severe it really was. Because even with weight loss, you can hide those things. You can avoid it. There are all kinds of things you can do to trick people into thinking you’re okay if you don’t want them to.” They know you’re hurting. And I’ve always done that, because I don’t like when people worry about me; I want them to be happy. You know, I’m a cheerleader for people. And 2020 was definitely the point where I felt, ‘I literally can’t work.’ I feel dizzy when I stand up for no reason. And I feel sick. I have to put myself first now.”
Watch Jackie Evancho’s full and extended interview on Yahoo Entertainment below, in which she also discusses getting into the show business at such a young age, her love for Joni Mitchell, her other bucket list ambitions, her regrets about singing at Donald Trump’s inauguration, and the fight for LGBTQ rights. +, and what other popular artist of the ’70s might inspire from her next cover project:
Another wake-up call came shortly after, in January 2021. After Evancho fractured her back in two places in a car accident, she was diagnosed with osteoporosis due to anorexia. Doctors said her fractures were of the type usually seen in 80-year-old patients. “It was daunting,” Evancho says. “I’m still terrified of driving when the weather is a bit bad. I still hurt, because my back doesn’t bend like it used to. But the only pro I’ve got from that is that now I know what I’m dealing with and I know I have to be more careful. I must I take vitamin supplements and fight hard to be the eating disorder that causes it.”
Evancho wasn’t sure of her long-term diagnosis of osteoporosis” (I haven’t been tested yet, and I I know I need to. …I’ve always hated doctors”), but when it comes to her eating disorder, she’s an optimist. She admits, “It’s still very hard fighting myself in my head when you have this disorder, and the thoughts you’re fighting with, you know, my passion for life.” And that’s the annoying thing about this eating disorder. It totally makes you fight yourself. You end up tired, constantly tired. You feel left out because of your own choices. You can’t just sit back and enjoy the birthday cake with the family. You can’t go out to this event because you’re too tired of what you’re putting on yourself that day. It takes a lot of your life.” But she is ready for a change.
“I’m still fighting and stuck in a place where real change has to happen,” Evancho says. “So, I still struggle with it a lot, but little by little, with each therapy and speech session, I wake up a little bit. … I still struggle with the same things I’ve been going back to in 2020, it’s just that I’m getting more used to what these feel like. Stuff - kind of nerve or panic. I know how to deal with this stuff now, but I’m still in the process of healing all of this stuff. I have to learn how to get to what I’ve suppressed. I have to learn how to process that in a healthy way, because I mean, that’s the way in which eating disorders develop and all the unhealthy coping skills. I have to retrain myself how to function in a healthy way.”
Evancho has had “a lot of support” from fans since she came forward about her fight, and says that’s “refreshing,” as previous comments on social media haven’t been quite as kind. “I used to receive: ‘You die before our eyes.’” “What with young people who do not eat?” Evancho recalls: “Have you ever heard of Karen Carpenter?” “It’s like, I’m I know What I deal with, and I can’t see myself the way others see themselves, or the way they see me. It was hard for me to read it to be harsh. It made me panic. It made me feel bad about myself. So, seeing people respond in a positive way to me is finally honest… It just reinforced my belief that if we are honest with ourselves and present in an honest way, even if that’s how you feel that day, there is no guilt. Nothing wrong with that because you were honest. This is my policy.”
Fortunately, Evancho’s health issues have not affected her beautiful vocals, although she says it “remains a huge risk, and it’s an ongoing concern.” But she “definitely feels good about” the performance circular time An album you’re truly proud of, and one you hope Mitchell will have a chance to hear someday - Live in Concert. She says getting ready for the tour will help in her recovery. “I think it’s good for me, because even though I’m not healthy - I’m not 100% healthy yet - it puts me in a position where I have no choice. Because the voice in favor of me, which does not try to hit me, resists more forcefully” .
Another important battle for Evancho is the crusade for LGBTQ+ rights - a cause especially close and dear to her heart because her younger sister, Juliet, is trans. “[Juliet is] I do good, I fight hard to defend everyone’s rights, and I couldn’t be more proud of them,” says Evancho proudly. I’m 100% for it all. My belief is that people should be what they want to be, and love who they want to be They love him, and what for everyone else.” If they are happy, why would it hurt you? If he doesn’t hurt you, leave him alone, let people be.”
That brings us to 2017, when Evancho, who was still a gullible teenager at the time, sang the national anthem at Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration. She was heavily criticized for this performance, especially then in light of Trump’s record of actions against transgender people, and has since expressed regret for agreeing to do so. “From the beginning of my career until now, it’s been a journey of learning how to say ‘no.’ Hmm, I’m still annoying, I swear,” she joked.
“When all the inauguration materials came in, it was a full discussion,” Evancho explains. “And all I could hear was, ‘I’m going to sing the national anthem for a president, and for my country, and that’s going to be something I have on my wish list that I can finally cross off. And no one really knew what kind of president Trump would become, and what would really follow him. But I also made sure my sister was fine with it too, because I never wanted her to feel like I didn’t support her, if I was doing something that would put her in an uncomfortable position. And she was totally supportive of me, as much as I would have of her in anything. And that’s kind of the reason why I came forward, you know? And it’s annoying then when seeing the result of that and what people were saying, and what they thought of me as a result of someone else’s actions. I think they’re two things. Separated, and I sing for my country should not reflect on my support for the LGBTQ community or my family.”
So, Evancho is moving forward… and is already looking forward to her next set of A native Music, which she promised would be “more vulnerable” than anything she’s ever recorded. “I would like to release an album featuring all of my original material, composed and produced by myself,” she says, when asked about the other career goals listed above. ‘Which - which [traumatic] Things only come up when I’m writing songs. I basically just sit and write songs as much as possible. …and I do a lot of diary.
“I like to say it’s like reopening a wound, but instead of healing it, I’m drawing with blood.”
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