Madison Beer Reflects on Early Fame and Overcoming Adversity
At just 26 years old, Madison Beer is already a seasoned veteran in the pop music industry. Her career began at the tender age of 13, when a tweet from Justin Bieber catapulted her into the spotlight. Over the past decade, she has navigated the complexities of fame, building a massive Gen Z following with over 60 million followers across Instagram and TikTok. Despite this, her path to success has been anything but straightforward, marked by challenges and a slow-burning rise to prominence.
A Slow Burn to Chart Success
Beer's recent single, Bittersweet, released in October, marked a milestone by entering the US Hot 100 chart at number 98. When congratulated on this achievement, she responded with a mix of gratitude and perspective. "I'm obviously super excited and thankful whenever a song performs well, but I think I'm at the point where I love what I make, and I'm proud of it regardless," she shared, adding with a laugh, "Only took me like, 15 years! But it's cool." This attitude reflects her journey of fits and starts, far from the meteoric rises often expected in pop music.
As she prepares for the release of her third album, Locket, Beer is poised to break into pop's upper echelon. Her 2023 album, Silence Between Songs, featured sleeper hits like Reckless and Home to Another One, and in 2024, she earned a Grammy nomination for Make You Mine. However, she emphasises that these successes came later in her career, after years of detaching from the pressure of charts and awards. "It was definitely hard for years to detach from that ideology, but I feel so much better off now that that's not something I drive myself crazy over," she explained.
Early Struggles and Online Cruelty
Raised in Long Island, New York, Beer moved to Los Angeles after her initial fame, signing with Scooter Braun, Justin Bieber's then-manager. Her early years involved typical teen idol activities, such as recording tie-in songs for doll brands and collaborating with peers like Cody Simpson. However, this period coincided with the rise of social media, a force that labels struggled to manage, leaving Beer vulnerable to online hate. "People are so quick to be like: 'This is what's wrong with this person,' and attack someone's character," she recalled, noting the intense backlash from fans of her first boyfriend, Jack Gilinsky.
Beer learned early on about the cruelty of online spaces, feeling unprotected as a teenager. "I learned, very early, that people can be quite cruel," she stated matter-of-factly. At 16, she was dropped by Braun and Island Records, an experience she described in a recent Cosmopolitan interview as having stolen years of her childhood. When asked about Braun's subsequent parting with clients like Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande, Beer chose to focus on her own healing. "I've done a lot of therapy, especially regarding those early years, and I've really tried to let go of it all," she said, emphasising that holding onto negativity no longer serves her.
New Album and Personal Growth
Locket represents a new chapter for Beer, featuring raw, provocative lyrics set against lush, dreamy pop music that draws comparisons to artists like Lana Del Rey and Sabrina Carpenter. She credits her introspective sophomore album, Silence Between Songs, with paving the way for this more direct and freewheeling approach. "With Silence Between Songs, I really let people get to know me – that was really what I wanted to get out of that album, whereas with this one, I kind of felt like I didn't need to go crazy over explaining myself and my story so much," she explained.
The album delves into themes of intense relationships and emotional depth, reflecting Beer's own experiences. She dated TikToker Nick Austin until spring 2025 and is now in a relationship with Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. "I feel very deeply, and I get spirally, I guess I could say, and kind of find myself being someone that dwells on things," she admitted, highlighting her abandonment and attachment issues. Through therapy, she has learned to embrace her flaws without shame. "I've done every kind of therapy – I'm talking about everything all the time, and I think I've come to a point where I can acknowledge these things about me without feeling shame," she shared.
Embracing Vulnerability and Moving Forward
Beer's journey includes releasing a memoir, The Half of It, in 2023, where she opened up about mental health struggles, teenage sexualisation, and more. This project, along with her music, aimed to humanise her beyond the internet celebrity persona. "I wanted to showcase the truth of things I've been through, and show my vulnerability, and hopefully inspire other people," she said. Now, she feels at peace with public perception, no longer feeling the need to defend herself online.
Despite fears about fans dissecting her lyrics and targeting past relationships, Beer stands by Locket as a genuine expression of her artistry. "To me, the true meaning of success is being able to feel peace and happiness, no matter what," she concluded, reflecting on her hard-won perspective. With Locket now released and upcoming tour dates in London and Manchester, Madison Beer continues to forge her path with resilience and authenticity.
