Demi Lovato, Keke Palmer Recall Feeling ‘Exploited’ By Older Men

Keke Palmer and Demi Lovato recently recalled feeling “exploited” by older men during a vulnerable conversation. Both Disney stars have opened up about past relationships, and on a new episode of “Baby, This is Keke Palmer,” the iconic actresses said they were more alike than they realized.

Palmer and Lovato opened up about their child star days and detailed past relationships with older men. “I’m fifteen, why was my boyfriend 20?” Palmer said to which Lovato replied, “Why was my boyfriend 30?”

Palmer was visibly stunned by Lovato’s admission, shouting, “Girl, d-mn.” She added, “I’m not smiling at that but that is real. We were trying to find outlets, though, and just a way to process this.”

Elsewhere during the conversation, Palmer added, “The moment when you realize and you get [to] the age of a lot of people that were around you and doing stuff it’s almost a mental break that can happen because you realize, ‘You were taking advantage. Oh, I was being exploited.’”

Palmer theorized that part of the reason she may have been in a relationship with an older man was that her job made her feel more mature than she was.

“That was very difficult for me because at 15 I’m thinking like, ‘My boyfriend’s older because I’m doing an older job. And I’m doing a bunch of things and this is the way that it is,’” the “True Jackson VP” actor added. “And it seemed normal in my mind.”

This isn’t the first time Palmer has discussed her past age gap relationship. In a 2024 interview with PEOPLE, the “Nope” actress said that she was trying to “balance” being young with feeling more mature for her age.

“If I thought it was inappropriate, then I wouldn’t have done it. Obviously, I shouldn’t have been 15 dating no 20-year-old,” she said.

Palmer said working a “full-time job” gave her a sense of independence she wasn’t used to. However, that wasn’t an excuse for the relationship she was in, she said.

“But he knew there was a lot of stuff that there’s no d-mn way for me to understand at damn 15.”

While speaking with Lovato, Palmer referenced Hilary Duff’s similar experience, which she sang about in her 2025 single “Mature.”

“She’s me, I’m her in a different font / Just a few years younger, a new haircut,” Duff sang in the pop song. “She looks … Like all of your girls but blonder / A little like me, just younger / Bet she loves when she hears you say, ‘You’re so mature for your age, babe.’”

“Yeah, because it’s like ‘oh sh-t’ we all had the same d-mn life.’ You know what I mean, where people kept telling us, ‘You’re so mature for your age,’” Palmer shared.

Social media users reacted to Palmer and Lovato’s conversation, and many voiced their displeasure with the pair’s experiences.

“Why do grown men like teenagers,” someone wrote. “This happens a lot so many men should be in jailllll,” another wrote.

“It’s sad when we come to the realization,” a third user posted, while a fourth said, “It’s so sad looking back.”

“Oh no that’s concerning. That’s predatory actually. I feel like you need to be 20 and above to date someone in their 20s, 30s and older,” another user wrote.

According to The Blast, Palmer also recently discussed boundaries she’d have in future relationships.

“One thing I need you to know is I never want to live together. I like my alone time,” Palmer said. “That’s real. I’m speaking as The Keke. I just feel like Whoopi Goldberg said it best once. She was like, ‘I don’t want nobody in my house.’ And I feel that. I’m serious — married, even.”

Palmer went on to say that she’d love for her future husband to be around the corner or even in the guest home. “You can be in the guest house, we can be on the same land, but I’m over there, and he’s over there. At best, separate rooms,” she said.

“But think about how fun it would be to be like, ‘I’m going over to my man’s house.’ Over there, hi husband!” she joked. “It keeps it fun and exciting. I want to go sit on his couch.”