Christina Aguilera talks about the impact men’s opinions have on her body image

Christina Aguilera reflects on her journey of “embracing sexuality” and owning her body within the toxic entertainment industry.

The 42-year-old spoke to Seduce about his beginnings as a performer in the Mickey Mouse Club, from the age of 7. And while the start of her career was certainly innocent, she recognized a lot in hindsight how she felt about her body and the lines that were blurred.

“In this business, you’re going to have a lot of opinions about your body, about your sexuality, what’s too much, what’s too little,” she told the publication. “A lot of it comes from male opinions and the opinions of older business people, which should have nothing to do with your body and your self-image.”

Aguilera later admitted that she struggled with bodily autonomy because of the control of external sources — particularly as she rose to fame with hits like “Genie in a Bottle” and “What a Girl Wants.”

“I wasn’t creatively delivering messages that really embodied who I was,” she explained. “So my second album was called Bare. People always thought it had some kind of sexual connotation, but rather, it was me speaking my truth about what it felt like to be me, to embrace my body and to be a woman outside of ideals others.”

While the music she created over the course of her career was intended to celebrate “all the different emotions of being a woman”, Aguilera did not shy away from visual expressions of her femininity such as “being outgoing and over the top and play with glam and makeup.”

Despite the seemingly superficial aspects, she explained that her mission was to empower other women.

“I’ve always wanted women to feel comfortable and safe enough to explore what makes them feel good,” she said. “Embrace sexuality to feel empowered and raw and out there, if that’s the kind of woman you want to be.”

This mission followed her into her final role as Co-Founder and Chief Brand Advisor of Playground, a women-owned lubricants brand focused on sexual health and wellness.

The story continues

“I love being part of something that creates things that are not only pleasurable but good for you and your vagina, which is the epicenter of everything for us,” Aguilera said. “It’s fun, but it can also be painful. It can be the birth of life. The vagina goes through a lot, so we have to let it feel good. We have to make sure we pamper it and nourish it. .”

It also feels like a step in the right direction for mother-of-eight-year-old Summer, who Aguilera says is constantly inspired by her.

“I try to be really aware of what I put in my body, what my daughter sees me putting in my body. We have conversations like, ‘What is a tampon? your rules?’ She’s eight years old, but education is key, and breaking the conversation down into digestible, easy-to-understand bits helps us take the fear and stigma out of things,” she says.

Ultimately, she hopes she will be part of a larger movement to eliminate stigma and shame around women’s sexual health.

“As a woman, anything about your body, especially your body, should be something you feel good about sharing,” she says.

Well-being, parenthood, body image and more: discover the WHO behind the whoo with the Yahoo Life newsletter. register here.