Lady Gaga and Elton John appear on the cover of this month's Billboard magazine, but this isn't your average pair of celebrity interviews. For the issue, Elton penned a powerful essay about the AIDS epidemic, while Gaga opened up more than ever about her personal struggle with anxiety and depression. Plus, when talking about her incredibly moving new song, "'Til It Happens to You," Gaga described the personal trauma she used to inspire it. Keep reading for their brazen quotes, then see more incredible Gaga moments from 2015.
- Lady Gaga, on her personal struggles: "I've suffered through depression and anxiety my entire life, I still suffer with it every single day. I just want these kids to know that that depth that they feel as human beings is normal. We were born that way. This modern thing, where everyone is feeling shallow and less connected? That's not human."
- On the biggest issue teens face: "Depression and anxiety really link them. There is something in the way that we are now, with our cell phones and people are not looking at each other and not being in the moment with each other, that kids feel isolated. They read all of this extremely hateful language on the Internet. The internet is a toilet. It is. It used to be a fantastic resource - but you have to sort through sh*t to find the good stuff."
- On her new song, "'Til It Happens to You":
"It's hard to listen to that song, it's hard to watch it. Diane [Warren] really held my hand. I was like, 'I've done a lot of things Diane, but can I do this?' She was like, 'You can do this.' It was extremely cathartic to know that not only am I not alone, but that other men and women aren't alone - we all have each other. Even outside of rape culture, there are a lot of people silently in pain about extremely traumatic things. The hardest part for me was the self-acceptance. There's an inability to acknowledge to yourself, 'Not only did this happen, but I'm pretty f*cked up about it.' And nobody knows how you feel. I didn't tell anyone [about my sexual assault] for years - and I didn't tell anyone for years because I didn't tell myself for years. And my soul just burnt out until it was gone. And then you have to admit you were in pain, and that you died in a way, but you are in control to bring it back, and there are people in the world who'll help you." - Elton John, on his AIDS foundation: "We have so much work left to do."
- On his personal encounters with HIV: "Dozens and dozens of my close friends and many colleagues in the music industry became HIV positive. They suffered and died, and it was the most horrible feeling, losing loved ones and knowing there was nothing I could do to help . . . but I knew I had to help. I needed to do something."
- On continuing the fight: "If we continue to harness passion and commitment - the energy of individuals, working tirelessly, doing whatever they can to make a difference - then I believe with all my heart that in my lifetime I will have seen the very first day, and also the very last day, of the AIDS epidemic."
from POPSUGAR Celebrity http://ift.tt/1VVcUil