Teenage Dreams
I am not ashamed to admit that when I was about thirteen years old I wanted to BE Britney Spears. I joined dance classes, practised interviews in front of my mirror and I frequently dressed in tank tops and trackies. I even tried to get my dad to be my manager. ‘Day job? Why do you need that when your little princess can do the jazz splits?’ He smiled and patted me on the head ‘Sure sweetie’. Patronizing. I desperately wanted to be a child star and immigrate to New York so I could join the Micky Mouse Club. Now in my early twenties, I still have the ambition to work in the entertainment industry, but unlike my former self now I feel I am ready (mentally and emotionally) to go and seize my dreams. Damn it I can be own manager!! Mwaha! I have also come to the realization of how unready I was as a young teen.
This month’s ASOS cover girl is the incredibly talented 14 year-old Chloë Moretz, (Kickass and (500) Days of Summer). I had a little chuckle thinking about how my fourteen year old self would probably have burned the magazine in some sort cultish teenage pagan ritual in my back garden in the hope Moretz’s screen success would transpire into my dull school girl life. Now, about to complete my third year of university, I find I have a totally different outlook on young stars like Moretz.
I’ve got to admit seeing this young teen fronting a magazine that is targeted at (I’m guessing) sixteen plus year olds I was kind of creeped out by the whole fiasco. Don’t get me wrong, she wasn’t dressed like a hooker or anything but it felt a little bit like child exploitation. Shouldn’t this girl be at school? Going to dance classes? Day dreaming about what she wants to be when she’s all grown up? According to Moretz she’s already grown up. ‘I’m in a business you can’t be a little kid in, or you don’t make it far’ she gushes in the interview. At this point I just wanted to give her a hug and some hot coco. Poor gal!
One thing I have really come to realize it that you never truly know how important BEING a teenager is until you’ve come out the other side. Now I am out of my teens I realise how vital that transition period was in my general development. Sure I still call my mum a couple times a week and of course I have occasional tantrums but ultimately I feel I know myself and what I want in my life. Rather then fame and money I know I want to be good at my profession and have integrity and put love before dollar, health before wealth and all that… The great irony is I only realized how important it is to grow (emotionally, intellectually and physically) once I had already done a certain amount of growing.
Although I think I probably would have sold my left leg and my hamster (poor hamster) to be a child star at the time, in retrospect I am so glad I had a fame free childhood – my teens were complicated enough thank you very much. Hormones, relationships, family feuds, confusion, trauma, rejection, depression, falling in-love, falling out of love, success, failure… It was a freakin rollercoaster man!!
Acting is one thing but Moretz’s affair with fashion feels depressingly perverted and adds a whole new level to this disruption of healthy development. ‘The actress knows the importance of a good stiletto… Alexander Wang, Valentino, Marc Jacobs and Porenza Schouler are among those who have dressed her for red carpet events’. The more I read, the more sorry I felt. She didn’t seem like a person… more like a performing monkey doll. If I wore stilettos at fourteen I would have got a clip round the ear.
Elle Fanning was also appearing in this Generation Next feature. Her ASOS interview was just LOLs. I actually couldn’t believe what I was reading… despite being described as ‘childlike’ she’s also a ‘fashion muse’!?! I would personally call that an oxymoron (which I begrudgingly learnt at GSCE English in between daydreaming about my sell out world music tour).
There seems to be only two kinds of industry that grooms children and one of them – I regretfully admit – seems to be the fashion industry. How can a kid possibly be childlike AND a fashion muse?? When has a thirteen year old even had a chance to explore fashion? Had the joys of wearing PJ’s to school (for those who laughed I’d like to point out THEY’RE IN FASHION NOW)? Dressed like your favourite pop star and felt like the bee knees? Spent your pocket money at Tammy Girl?
Fanning seems to have skipped the discovery bus and hopped onto the apparel express train. Destination? To the past apparently ‘My style icon is Sylvie Vartan – the French 60’s singer’. Again LOL.
‘I’d much rather look like a five year old than a 21 year-old’ says Fanning. What the – Why can’t you just be thirteen? I also don’t get why these girls are so preoccupied with labels and designers. Why are they being ‘dressed’? Surely this is the precise time they should be dressing themselves! When I was their age (sound like my gran now) I was trying out horse riding, sailing, piano, model making… ya know… living! Surely living is the key ingredient in being a creative person.
I am confused why ASOS decided to use such young stars to front its brand. In the kindest way possible I don’t know many people (above the age of fourteen) who would want to dress like these adolescent stars – not because they dress badly or anything but because it’s down right weird.
The magazine really got me thinking about my teens and how blessed I am to have had the chance to become…well… me. Maybe in ten years time I will be saying how clueless I was in my twenties. I guess that’s the beauty of growing up. It’s a gradual process and I don’t believe you can simply skip stages. I am kinda glad I haven’t had all the fame and fortune yet (perhaps you’re thinking: she has to say that right?). I never did become a child star in the end.
I guess I’m a shameless optimist but I take comfort in knowing I have the great climb ahead of me. Yeah it will be tough but luckily right now I feel I have all the equipment I need to deal with the high altitude.
For peeps reading this who had MASSIVE teenage dreams that never came true – I’ve bin told life is a marathon not a sprint. I hope this encourages you! We can do it!!
Have a great week peeps.
X
p.s. I still love you Britney!
Tags: ASOS child star Chloe Moretz Teenage Dreams
Categories: Rant