08 December 2018
Newsdesk
Singer Meghan Trainor panicked over fears cyberbullies would pan her dance moves in her All About That Bass promo.
The pop star was a target for mean comments online while in high school, and when she made her dancing debut in the music video for her 2014 smash hit, she expected the worst from critics.
"This was the first time I danced in public," the 24 year old revealed to America's TODAY Show. "This was terrifying on so many different levels. I never really danced at the school dances, and I remember my first comment was, 'Oh no, but what if the kids in high school see this video?'
"I was just so embarrassed... (I was afraid of) being judged, being laughed at. Like, 'What is Meghan doing in a dress? And why is she dancing like that? She's not a good dancer.' I was freaking out."
Meghan had a hard time in high school as a victim of cyberbullying, and the star is now grateful to her parents for intervening online on her behalf to shield her from cruel comments.
"I remember I always wanted to be on Facebook and my mum wouldn't (let me)... so I would like, sneak on, but then the first time I ever got really bullied was because someone posted an ugly picture of me and wanted me to get hurt from it...," she recalled.
"I went to my parents, I was like, 'Hey, I messed up, I went on Facebook like you told me not to do, and now my heart's destroyed,' and they were like, 'Don't do anything, don't try to comment and be mean.'
"I just cried for a long time, and I'm still scarred from it..."
Meghan, who is now engaged to Spy Kids actor Daryl Sabara, still relies on her mum Kelli for protection from cyberbullies to this day.
"I didn't even know my mum was doing it, but from the beginning of my career, she went on my Twitter and 'muted' the mean comments so I never could see them. You can't affect me 'cause my mum will get to you first!," she laughed, admitting she still has thin skin.
"I think at the end of the day, no matter if you're a pop star or what your career is, or what age you're at, I think you'll be affected by it (mean comments on social media), even if you're like, 'I'm really strong and that doesn't bug me.' I think... the human part of us..., no matter how strong I can be as a person, I'm gonna get affected by it, and I always do, I always get affected by it."
