Just over a year ago, Demi Lovato said she could still “go to the mall or whatever” and not be mobbed by screaming fans.

But then, a few things happened: Disney Channel flick Camp Rock, debut album Don’t Forget, touring with the Jonas Brothers.

Poof! A tween star was born.

“It’s a change, and my life is different. But at the same time, it’s really not that big of a difference,” says Lovato, 16, calling from a tour stop in Lafayette, La. She’s on the road with American Idol finalist David Archuleta.

“I still have the same friends. I’m just a little busier. I’ve been having so much fun.”Things aren’t slowing down anytime soon. The Dallas native stars in her own sitcom, Sonny With a Chance, playing a small-town girl who moves to Hollywood after being cast on a sketch-comedy show. Lovato’s newest TV flick, Princess Protection Program, premiered last month to 8.5 million viewers and features BFF Selena Gomez. She’s also gearing up to film a sequel to Camp Rock, which cast her as middle-class good girl Mitchie Torres opposite the Jonas Brothers and lots of shiny, happy pop songs.

“It’d be pretty nice to see Mitchie fall in love,” Lovato says of her hopes for her character. “That’d be really cool.”

Before the possibilities of scripted romance, Lovato croons about love on Here We Go Again, available July 21. It’s the follow-up to her solid debut disc, Don’t Forget, which was anchored by angsty teen drama.

“When you’re having a bad day, you don’t really break out into a scene in your room,” Lovato says. “I write music, and I connect to music. It’s like therapy to me.”

This time around, however, she promises a sweeter side.

“It’s not so angry, like the last one. I think (that) was where I was at personally,” she says.

“It’s really easy to write angry songs. It doesn’t really take much. It was a challenge writing about falling in love and stuff like that. But I enjoy it a lot more than writing mean songs.”

Lovato teamed up with John Mayer (World of Chances, a “really mellow song about giving somebody second chances and third chances and just being over it”), Jon McLaughlin and — OMG! — Nick Jonas for several co-writes. She says some of the new tunes have “more of an R&B feel to them.”

The first single and title track is a melodic pop-rocker in the vein of past hits Get Back and La La Land and a nice showcase for Lovato’s maturing vocals. It’s a long way from her Barney & Friends beginnings.
And just as she’s slowly, but surely, evolving as a singer, Lovato would also like to take on more challenging acting roles. All in time.

“I would love to play a role where I’m doing something, like, totally crazy — a role like Girl, Interrupted or something. But that’s for way down the road,” she says. “I do feel like I’ve grown a little bit. But I also feel like there’s more. I don’t think I’m at the point where I can say, ‘I’m a good actress.’ I still have a lot of work to do.”

Source: Chron