Selena Gomez Explains Why She Thinks Her Past Relationships Have Been 'Cursed'

Selena Gomez is convinced her love life has been “cursed.”

The singer-songwriter spoke candidly about her dating history in her cover story for Vogue Australia. She touched on the topic when asked about the significance of the word “Rare,” which is the name of her 2020 studio album, her Rare Beauty line, as well as her Rare Impact Fund, which provides services and resources for mental health.

“I think most of my experiences in relationships have been cursed. I’ve been way too young to be exposed to certain things when I was in relationships,” Gomez said, before explaining why she has embraced the word “rare.” “I guess I needed to find what was that word for me, because I felt so less than in past relationships, and never really felt equal. And so that word to me — when I first heard it [used in the single ‘Rare’] with Nolan [Lambroza], one of the writers, I just said this is what I want to feel about myself. So it wasn’t even necessarily like: ‘Oh, I feel that way, let me sing it.’ It was almost like: ‘Actually, I need to feel that way about myself.’”

Gomez’s dating life has been well-documented over the years. The Disney alum has been romantically linked to stars like the Weeknd, Nick Jonas, Zedd, and, most notably, Justin Bieber, with whom she had an on-again, off-again relationship for about eight years. Gomez did not indicate whether she is currently single or in a relationship.

Elsewhere in the interview, Gomez spoke about her hopes for post-pandemic life, saying she’s witnessed positive changes in the way people interact with one another.

“I hope people understand how fragile life is, but how beautiful it is at the same time,” she said. “I’ve seen people become lighter, more patient, actually [having] a lot of intellectual conversations, real substance. You can tell that’s happened with people. It’s not just like: ‘Oh, how you’re doing? Do you want to go and get dinner?’ It’s so special when you’re with someone. You never get to value that, or you’re so involved in your phone. I can just tell that the world is craving connection with people, and to be honest, I think we lacked that.”

You can read Gomez’s full Vogue Australia cover story here.