The British singer Lily Allen felt the love and concern of her fan base after she wrote an emotional post on her official MySpace blog (warning: it’s bright!)
An outspoken advocate of individuality and self-belief, her uncharacteristic post read:
“I used to pride myself on being strong minded and not being some stupid girl obsessed with the way I look. I felt like it didn’t matter if I was a bit chubby cause, I’m not a model, I’m a singer. I’m afraid I am not strong and have fallen victim to the evil machine. I write to you in a sea of tears from my hotel bed in Seattle, I have spent the past hour researching gastric bypass surgery, and laser liposuction.”
Her fans rallied around to post “positive body image” comments, prompting Allen to follow up with:
“I’m sorry if I worried anyone with the blog I wrote yesterday. I was feeling pretty sorry for myself, I’ve been reading all your comments and they have made me realize there is more to life than being thin! So thank you. I think I was just having a hard time last week.”
While it’s easy to be cynical about whether celebrity bloggers really do write their own material, it’s difficult to imagine the headstrong Allen getting her PR company involved. In any case, it’s an interesting reversal of the norm, where fans hang on the words of their idols. In this case, Lily may well have been boosted by reading the words of her fans.
