Demi Lovato

Demetria Devonne "Demi" Lovato (born August 20, 1992) is an American actress, musician, and singer-songwriter. Her earliest roles included a part on Barney & Friends, before she became better known for her starring roles in the Camp Rock movies, as Sonny Munroe in Sonny with a Chance, and as the star of the 2009 movie Princess Protection Program. As a solo musical artist, Lovato released her debut album Don't Forget on September 23, 2008. The album debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 selling 89,000 copies in the first week. It has since sold over 500,000 records in the United States and got certified Gold by RIAA. Lovato stated in an interview that the album was recorded in ten days. Lovato released her second album, Here We Go Again, on July 21, 2009. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, selling 108,000 copies in the first week. Lovato was born in Dallas, Texas on August 20, 1992 to Patrick Lovato and Dianna Hart de la Garza. She is of Mexican, Irish, and Italian descent. She has an older sister, Dallas Lovato, and a younger half sister, Madison de la Garza. Her mother was a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader and country music recording artist; her father moved to New Mexico after their marriage ended in 1994. Lovato earned a high school diploma through homeschooling in April 2009. She began playing piano at the age of seven. Before any of Lovato's music was officially released a few of her original songs, including "Shadow," were featured on the show As the Bell Rings. Lovato also sang a cover of "That's How You Know" by Amy Adams from the film Enchanted that was released on DisneyMania 6 on May 20, 2008. In June and July 2008, Lovato performed at various House of Blues and parks for her Demi Live! Warm Up Tour in preparation for the release of her debut album and the Burnin' Up Tour with the Jonas Brothers. The soundtrack to the Disney Channel Original Movie Camp Rock was released in June 2008. Lovato was featured on four of the tracks on the soundtrack, including "This is Me," a duet with Joe Jonas. The song peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100. Lovato served as the support act on the Jonas Brothers' Burnin' Up Tour from July through September 2008. Several concerts on the tour were filmed as footage for a 3-D concert film titled Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience, which was released on February 27, 2009. Lovato was featured in the film, performing "This Is Me" with Joe Jonas. Lovato also appeared on two soundtrack albums in 2010. She recorded songs for the Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam soundtrack, which was released on August 10, 2010, and the Sonny with a Chance soundtrack in late 2010.

On September 23, 2008, Lovato released her debut solo album, Don't Forget. The album peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, selling 89,000 units in its first week of release. It has since sold over 500,000 records in the US. Lovato stated in an interview that the album was recorded in ten days. The album was preceded by the lead single, "Get Back," which was released on August 12, 2008. The song reached #43 on the Billboard Hot 100. In December 2008, Lovato released her second single from the album, "La La Land," which reached #52 on the Hot 100. In March 2009, she released her third single, "Don't Forget." Reaching #41 on the Hot 100, it became her most successful solo single at the time. An extended play titled Moves Me was released in December 2008 by the Well Go USA label, but not under Lovato's support. The EP featured songs recorded by Lovato before being signed by Hollywood Records. In 2009, Lovato recorded "One and the Same" for the film Princess Protection Program. Lovato's Princess Protection Program co-star, Selena Gomez, appeared on the song. In early 2009, it was announced that Lovato would be embarking on the Summer Tour 2009 to promote her sophomore album, which she stated would be released in the summer of 2009. The tour began on June 21, 2009 in Hartford, Connecticut and concluded on August 24, 2009 in Manchester, New Hampshire. Lovato's second studio album, Here We Go Again, was released on July 21, 2009. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 with 108,000 records sold in its first week. Prior to the album's release, Lovato described the record's sound as a departure from her previous album, saying, "It's going to take a different sound, so hopefully it goes over well. I sing a lot of rock, but this time I want to do more John Mayer-ish type of songs. Hopefully I can write with people like him." The album was more inspired by acoustic music than her debut's pop rock-influenced sound. The album received a score of 65/100 from Metacritic. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic noted that the album was not as much fun as Lovato's previous album, Don't Forget, but he praised several songs for being "ideally matched to Lovato's adolescent energy and spirit, which remain her most appealing qualities." Chicago Tribune also gave the album five stars, saying "No sophomore slump for these young artists". Kerri Mason of Billboard praised the album for not relying heavily on production compared to other Disney Channel artists and called Lovato "a natural talent who could really take flight after outgrowing Disney." Simon Vozick-Levinson of Entertainment Weekly praised the more rock-oriented tracks such as "Got Dynamite," calling them suggestions of "a direction that might set her apart in years to come."

In December 2009, Allmusic ranked Here We Go Again as one of the best pop albums of 2009. In 2010, the album was nominated for 2 Teen Choice Awards, "Choice Album" and "Choice Love Song," and Lovato for "Choice Music Breakout Artist: Female." The album was preceded by the lead single, "Here We Go Again," which was released on June 23, 2009. It became Lovato's highest charting single as it reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album's second single, "Remember December," was released on November 17, 2009 but only managed to reach #6 on Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 (number 106 on the Hot 100). She appeared on We the Kings's second studio album, Smile Kid, in 2009. On the album, she contributes guest vocals to the song "We'll Be a Dream"," which was later released as a single in March 2010. The song's accompanying music video, which also features Lovato, was released on April 22, 2010 through MTV.com. On March 30, 2010, Lovato announced her South American Tour through her official Myspace page. This was her first international headlining tour. The tour commenced on May 23, 2010 in Santiago, Chile and concluded on May 28, 2010 in São Paulo, Brazil. On April 27, 2010, the Jonas Brothers announced their Jonas Brothers Live in Concert Tour, featuring Lovato as a special guest. The tour visited several cities in North and South America. The tour began on August 7, 2010 in Tinley Park, Illinois and ended on November 13, 2010 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. However, Lovato dropped out of the tour on October 30, 2010 in order to enter a treatment facility to treat physical and emotional issues. Lovato also stated in July 2010 that work on her third album had begun, describing it as "a little more pop," "more R&B," and "more soulful." She said, "It has a different sound to it so I'm really excited to see how it turns out. Keri Hilson and Rihanna are inspiring my sound right now. I have also written a half Spanish song. It turned out really incredible so hopefully my fans will love it too." The album will be released in Spring 2011, as confirmed by Lovato. Demi Lovato received a lot of collaboration offers from different songwriters during her stay at the treatment center. As of March 8, 2011 only the collaboration with Timbaland has been confirmed, status of the other collaboration remains unknown.

Lovato began her acting career at the age of seven on the children's television series Barney & Friends as Angela, appearing in seasons seven and eight alongside long time friend Selena Gomez. In 2006 Lovato guest starred on Prison Break as Danielle Curtin in the episode "First Down." She also appeared in the second season of the television sitcom Just Jordan as Nicole, in the episode "Slippery When Wet." In January 2007, she landed the role of Charlotte Adams on the Disney Channel Original Short Series, As the Bell Rings, which premiered on August 26, 2007. A few of her original songs, including "Shadow," were featured on the show. Upon leaving the show, her character was replaced by Lindsey Black. In 2008, Lovato starred in the Disney Channel film Camp Rock. She played Mitchie Torres, a fourteen-year-old girl with hopes of becoming a singer. The movie premiered on June 20, 2008 in the United States on the Disney Channel with 8.9 million viewers, making Lovato a household name among young viewers. She provided vocals on four of the songs featured on the Camp Rock soundtrack, including "This Is Me" featuring Joe Jonas. In June 2009 Lovato co-starred in Princess Protection Program as Princess Rosalinda alongside Selena Gomez on the Disney Channel. The made-for-television movie is the third highest rated Disney Channel Original Movie, premiering on the Disney Channel with 9.8 million viewers. Lovato later went on to star in the Disney Channel Original Series Sonny With a Chance, which premiered on February 8, 2009. The series' second season premiered on March 14, 2010. The show stars Lovato as Sonny Munroe who becomes the new cast member of a live sketch comedy show titled So Random!. In September 2009, production began for Camp Rock's sequel, Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam. The Disney Channel Original Movie premiered on September 3, 2010, upon which it gained 8 million viewers. In March 2010, Lovato was one of the many stars featured in a public service announcement for Voto Latino in order to promote the organization's "Be Counted" campaign for the 2010 United States Census. Lovato appeared as a guest star in an episode of the medical drama series Grey's Anatomy as a teenage patient named Haley, whose parents brought her in for schizophrenia. The episode, titled "Shiny Happy People," aired May 13, 2010 on the ABC television network. In a review of the episode, EW.com praised her performance, stating, "I still believe that even an unbiased observer would conclude that the Disney princess did a fine job acting it up as a suicidal 16-year-old who was admitted after trying to claw her own eyes out." Demi Lovato made a surprise appearance on America's Next Top Model on the September 15, 2010 episode to speak out about bullying. Lovato also appeared on CNN on September 7, to speak out about bullying.

Demi Lovato has been involved in extensive philanthropic activities. She partnered with mall proprietor GGP as the face of Shop Til You Rock, a music-inspired series of public events, which kicked off at malls around the United States in the summer 2010. It combines fashion with popular musical artists in a series of interactive events. Lovato is also the spokesperson for anti-bullying organization PACER. Lovato explained to the New York Post about becoming a spokesperson against bullying, saying, "Bullying is a very serious thing to me; I’ve witnessed it first hand. I was bullied myself when I was 12. I want to be able to help other girls around [my sister's] age come into their own with a strong confidence in their skin, their size, who they are, and everything about themselves." Lovato is also the spokesperson for the Join the Surge Campaign. Do Something and Clean & Clear launched Joining the Surge, which is a national campaign that empowers teenagers to take action in their communities. Lovato is involved in Disney's Friends for Change, an organization which promotes "environmently-friendly behavior," and appears in its public service announcements to raise awareness for the cause on the Disney Channel. Lovato, Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, and the Jonas Brothers recorded "Send It On," a charity single that served as the theme song for the organization in 2009. The song debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #20. Disney's Friends for Change directed all of its proceeds from "Send It On" to environmental charities to the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund. Lovato and Joe Jonas recorded a new song called "Make a Wave," the second charity single that currently serves as the theme song for Disney's Friends for Change. Lovato is also apart of the "A Day Made Better" School Advocacy Campaign. "The campaign is giving a deserving teacher with $1000 in school supplies on behalf of OfficeMax’s “A Day Made Better” school advocacy campaign" In an interview with Ellen DeGeneres, Lovato admitted to going through painful experiences with bullying in the seventh grade. According to Lovato, the bullying was so bad that one day, in a fit of frustration and distress, she requested her mom give her a home-schooled education. She wrote the song "For the Love of a Daughter" about her estranged father. Lovato is a Christian and prays with her band before they perform. After Lovato and Selena Gomez, the two of whom first met several years previous at the Barney & Friends auditions, posted a video blog on YouTube in March 2008, Miley Cyrus and her friend Mandy Jiroux uploaded a parody of that video, which caught the interest of entertainment media. Reports included the theory that Lovato and Gomez might replace Cyrus. Gomez clarified there was no feud. In 2010, on her eighteenth birthday, Lovato bought her family a Mediterranean style house in Los Angeles. She said, "For me to give that to my family on my birthday, that was the best present." She then added, "It's got pretty much everything you could possibly imagine in it. It's the most beautiful, homey-feeling house. I love it." Lovato also purchased their past $1.88 million home in Toluca Lake, Los Angeles. She bought the house when she was 16 years old. Lovato is a vegetarian. She has been honored the Honorary Ambassador of Education award from the American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders. She is a fan of heavy metal music, such as Maylene and the Sons of Disaster, Abigail Williams, The Devil Wears Prada, and Job for a Cowboy.

On November 1, 2010, Lovato's publicist announced that she had left the Jonas Brothers' Live in Concert tour early during the preceding weekend in order to enter a treatment center and "seek medical treatment for emotional and physical issues she has dealt with for some time." The tour was not scheduled to be complete until November 13. Lovato's publicist stated that "she regrets not being able to finish her tour, but is looking forward to getting back to work in the near future." The day after the announcement, a Disney spokesperson told People that Disney "support[s] Demi's decision to put her health first and [they] send her [their] best wishes". Lovato's publicist denied persistent media speculation that Lovato's treatment was for substance abuse. Other sources reported that she "went into a rehab for eating disorders and cutting and other sorts of things." In particular, many media sources immediately reported that Lovato had decided to enter treatment right after punching a Jonas Brothers back-up dancer, Alex Welch, on a flight out of Bogotá, Colombia, allegedly because Lovato believed that Welch had informed tour managers of inappropriate behaviour on Lovato's part the previous night, causing Lovato to be confronted by the managers and her stepfather, Eddie de la Garza. Days after Lovato entered rehab, photos circulated on the internet showing Welch sporting a black eye. Welch later claimed that the story is true, noting that she had been blindsided by the assault, because although Lovato had pulled aside the tour's back-up dancers prior to the flight and threatened, "If I find out who told on me...," Welch was not concerned because she had not witnessed whatever had happened the previous night and was not the dancer who had informed on Lovato. Welch claimed that she "didn't get a call or text from Demi or a 'hey, you got a problem with me,' nothing." She said Lovato simply approached her, punched her, and then "literally walked away and got in her seat." Lovato's representatives responded by saying that, "We are in the process of engaging with Alex's lawyer and hope to resolve this as quickly as possible." Lovato's camp reached a financial settlement with Welch in late December 2010, with Welch stating that the agreement stipulated for a portion of the settlement to be donated to charity.