Demi Lovato, pop goddess, reaching for the sky

When the “Do Something” Awards show hits the air on VH1 (Thursday, August 18 for first telecast), viewers will be treated to a live rendition—sung by the original artist this time—of the song that’s taking the world by storm: Skyscraper.

Appearing in a flowing dress and equally-themed hair, Demi Lovato stands tall and statuesque as the pop goddess she was born to be—with a voice that brings equal validation with every note. It’s the moment her supporters have been waiting for, and a triumph earned after a year of well-documented life changes.

By now, Lovato’s story is well-known to many. The singing career that began, side-by-side with her best friend Selena Gomez, at age 7 on the Barney & Friends tour. Then the meteoric rise to the top of Disney’s ‘tween star machine. The television show. The rock star boyfriend. The number one album. The Target clothing line. The sold-out concert tour.

But beneath it all, Demi hid secrets: a self-cutting disorder spawned by bullying from her elementary school years, soon spiraling into an eating disorder that began to damage her voice. When she and Joe Jonas broke up in early fall 2010, the fairy tale unraveled even further. Lovato’s depression exploded into a physical attack on one of her tour’s back-up dancers. As the rest of the world celebrated Halloween, her manager drafted a press release with the announcement that Demi had decided to seek professional help for her demons.

Now back on the scene with a more scaled-back schedule, Lovato is focusing full-time on the medium that has driven her the most: music. With Disney’s public blessing, she’s bowed out of her TV show for the time being, and has released the single: a song that’s been watched over 16 million times on YouTube, and likely covered by as many artists wanting their own chance to croon the lyrics that have become a new rallying cry for a recession-trodden world. In the words of mtv.com’s James Montgomery : “With one song, Demi Lovato has grown up before our very eyes.” 

Fittingly, Lovato celebrates her 19^th birthday this weekend—by attending the wedding of her friend, Kim Kardashian. Demi’s been invited to the big kid’s table now: an honor well-deserved for Barney’s bespectacled 7 year-old, now all grown up, gorgeous and making us beg for more.