PHOTOSHilary Duff Opens Up: "I'm Not Lizzie McGuire Any More!"
Jan. 28 2015, Updated 2:07 p.m. ET
It’s already been a whirlwind year for Hilary Duff. On top of playing doting mom to adorable son Luca, 2, the singer is hard at work on a new album (her frst in five years!), having announced her separation from—and possible reconciliation with—husband of three years Mike Comrie, 33. So how is it that fans of the former child star, now 26, still can’t perceive her as an adult? OK! caught up with Hilary at the iHeartRadio Music Awards, where she opened up about the difficulty of shedding her Disney alter ego.
OK!: Do you feel like people expect you to be Lizzie McGuire forever?
Hilary Duff: I don’t think people expect it, but they seem to still have this young image of me in their heads, so it’s hard for them to understand that I’ve grown up a lot. I don’t wear a retainer, and I don’t play with Barbie.
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OK!: What is one lesson you learned the hard way on the road to adulthood?
HD: To not care what others think! When I was younger, I would read stuff about myself online. But I’ve realized I know who I am, my friends know who I am, my family knows who I am—and to me, that’s all that matters.
OK!: What is the biggest misconception about you?
HD: People expect me to be perfect, and the fact of the matter is, I’m not. I’m going through life, just like everyone else, fnding my own way and my own path. And I make mistakes—but I learn from them, and I don’t have any regrets.
Would Hilary want to see into her future? “No, then I’d just be waiting for things instead of living my life. I take each day as it comes, and I’m good at handling what’s thrown my way, so I don’t think I need a heads-up. I’m good. I got this!”
