Anna Good
It seems that one of Demi Lovato’s newest tracks is calling out the 12-year age gap between them and their ex-boyfriend, Wilmer Valderrama.
Lovato, who is non-binary and recently announced that they are using she/her pronouns alongside they/them pronouns, is releasing their eighth studio album on August 19. The album is titled ‘Holy Fvck.’
Teasers of new songs over the past couple of months have made it clear that the 29-year-old is shifting from their style of pop music, but as they said in an interview with The Spout Podcast, it’s not just their gender and sexuality that is fluid, but also their music style.
A clip from one of the tracks on the new album, titled “29,” has come out on TikTok, and some of its lyrics seem to very clearly allude to the singer’s relationship with ex-boyfriend Valderrama.
At the time that the pair met, Lovato was 17 years old and Valderrama was 29, and they started dating in 2010 after her 18th birthday. Their relationship ended in 2016 after six years together.
Lovato has been adamant in the past that the That 70’s Show actor didn’t want to date her when she was still a minor, according to an interview with Complex.
“We shot a PSA together for the 2010 Census forms for Voto Latino,” they told Complex. “We shot them at his house, so we actually met there. Of course, I was like, ‘Oh my god. You’re so attractive.’ And he was like, ‘You are not 18. Get away from me.’”
They went on, saying, “Then we became really good friends, and he was there for me through a number of situations and breakups and whatever. Then as I got older and we grew closer, it was like, ‘Hey, maybe we should try this thing out.’ We did, and we’ve basically been together ever since.’”
Fans are definitely convinced that Lovato has changed their tune on the relationship now that they are the same age Valderrama was when they started dating, especially given the lyrics on the new song.
Lovato sings about a tumultuous relationship in the track.
“Petal on the vine / Too young to drink wine / Just five years of bleeders, student and a teacher / Far from innocent / What the fuck’s consent? / Numbers told you not to / But that didn’t stop you.”
“Finally 29 / Funny, just like you were you at the time,” they go on, which seems to be a reference to their age now and Valderrama’s age back then. “Thought it was a teenage dream / Just a fantasy / But was it yours or was it mine?”
At another point in the song, Lovato sings, “17, 29 / Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh / 17, 29,” the same ages the singer and actor were when they started dating.
While the song never explicitly states that it is about the controversial relationship, the parallels are pretty clearly there, and fans have exploded with theories about the song.
