Selena Gomez is finally opening up about that mysterious rehab stint that followed the cancellation of her Stars Dance Tour. In the new Billboard cover story, the "Good for You" singer revealed that she wasn't overcoming a drug or alcohol addiction or distressed over her ex-boyfriend Justin Bieber. Instead, she was undergoing chemotherapy treatments for lupus.
Gomez made the startling revelation as she pondered why everyone was so mean to her when she's a kind, hard-working woman.
"I'm so f*cking nice to everybody, and everyone is so vile to me," she said. "I've been working since I was 7. I've been a UNICEF ambassador since I was 17. It's so disappointing that I've become a tabloid story. It took away everything I loved about this business."
Gomez dismissed gossip sites such as Hollywood Life and those that perpetuated the rumors that she was in rehab for personal demons. Then, she revealed the real reason she took a break.
"I was diagnosed with lupus, and I've been through chemotherapy. That's what my break was really about. I could've had a stroke," Gomez said. "I wanted so badly to say, 'You guys have no idea. I'm in chemotherapy. You're assh*les.' But I was angry I even felt the need to say that. It's awful walking into a restaurant and having the whole room look at you, knowing what they're saying. I locked myself away until I was confident and comfortable again."
Her career restart inspired the title of her new album Revival, which is due for release on Friday (Oct. 9).
