While Selena Gomez’s life appears to be an open book, she had hesitations about her 2022 Apple TV+ documentary, My Mind and Me.
“I was very against it,” the Only Murders in the Building star, 31, said on Tuesday, September 19 at the Universal Music Group and Thrive Global’s Music & Health Conference, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The documentary followed six years in Gomez’ life, including her battles with mental illness, lupus and bipolar disorder.
“There was a very long period of time where I just didn’t know if it was a good idea. I knew, eventually, one day I wanted to maybe just be an actress for a while, and I didn’t know if it would jeopardize things in my life,” the versatile entertainer, who boasts more than 429 Instagram followers, added. “I don’t know what I’m doing, letting people into my life. And then the moment it was released … I had no choice at that point. And I was relieved. I felt like a huge weight was lifted.”
Despite her reluctance in participating in the documentary, Gomez found the process to be a cathartic experience.
“I felt like I got to say things that I’ve been keeping in for years. It’s very hard for me to watch. I will never watch it again, but I’m very proud of it,” she continued. “I couldn’t have been luckier to have the people that worked on it with me.”
Despite her huge Instagram following, Gomez has often taken breaks from social media, and has said being the most followed woman on IG is not important to her.
“I’ve never really cared about that stuff,” she commented to THR. “I suppose I’m grateful for the platform, and I would love to continue to use it for what I’m able to do, but numbers are just numbers.”
Gomez has become a virtual friend for millions of people, and accepts the responsibility of inspiring people and helping them cope with life’s challenges.
“It can be a little heavy,” she continued. “I feel for people, and I think that’s what kind of keeps me in check, to be honest. I think I can be a little reckless with my emotions and having conversations with young people, women who are going through divorces or going through chemo — it’s not just about me, and I’m fully aware of that. I will just always cherish it. It’s a big responsibility, though. It’s a little scary.”
The use of artificial intelligence is an prevalent issue as actors fear their voices and images could be replaced by AI. In addition to her work as an actress, Gomez is also a recording artist who released her latest song, “Single Soon,” in August. She hopes AI will not become a concern in the music industry.
“I don’t think anybody in my field wants to feel like they need to lean on a computer in order to translate their story or what they’re trying to say,” she said. “It terrifies me, to be honest, the whole AI thing, but I don’t think you could ever replace what a human being can write, … Lil Wayne said it really well, and he was basically saying that there’s no other human like who you are. And that’s all it should be.”
