Hilary Duff opened up about the years it took her to embrace her lasting connection to her iconic character, Lizzie McGuire.
"I think it took me a good 10 years to make peace with Lizzie McGuire, you know? It was weird to play a character that people fall so in love with that doesn't grow up. She stays that age, and then I grew up," she said in an interview on The Drew Barrymore Show.
Lizzie McGuire is an American teen sitcom that premiered on Disney Channel in 2001, starring Hilary as the title character navigating the challenges of her teenage years.
Hilary explained that while she eventually learned to embrace the character, it was initially difficult to grow and evolve while people continued to see her as Lizzie.
"And so now I'm obsessed with her and I get to join the fandom and be excited like everybody else, even though I was her. But for a while it was a hard thing to be changing and evolving and but everywhere I went, I was this to people," she admitted.
The actress-singer also revealed that her desire to move beyond the character inspired her to pursue another path in entertainment and become a pop star.
"I think that was why I wanted to be a pop star. You know, the second I finished filming Lizzie, I was like, cool. I don't want to be called that anymore. And I'm going to make music and I'm going to get a record deal, and I'm going to be a pop star," she stated.
Hilary released her debut studio album, Santa Claus Lane, in 2002.
She recently returned with her sixth studio album, Luck... or Something, which was released on February 20, marking her first full-length record in more than a decade following Breathe In. Breathe Out.
The 11-track album includes songs such as “Mature,” “Roommates,” “Weather for Tennis,” and “The Optimist,” among others.
In a previous interview with Billboard, Hilary explained the inspiration behind the album’s title and concept.
"I constantly get asked how I still have my head on straight after growing up in this industry. The album title is my way of answering that question, which felt right for a record that's about where I've landed and all the things I've been through along the way," she stated.