Just because celebrities are always in the public eye, doesn't mean they're at ease with it.
Yes, Jennifer Lawrence is always on camera. Sure, Adele performs in front of thousands of people. But try telling that to their anxiety. At the end of the day, they're still just people. And some people struggle with performance anxiety and stage fright.
Stage fright, or nervousness before or during a performance, is a very real form of social anxiety. And more celebrities are opening up about dealing with their bouts of stage fright or anxiety, hoping to offer some wisdom to others who share their struggle.
Click ahead for celebrities who've dealt with stage fright, and who have found ways to overcome their fears.
Rihanna
How do you battle stage fright when you're Riri? By taking a shot.
Before every performance, Rihanna sucks on lozenges and steams her vocal chords. Then, she takes a sip of liquor diluted with soda water or orange juice.
"I have to have it. I take [performing] very seriously, so there is a level of anxiety, always," she told Esquire in 2011. "The drink calms my nerves. I sip it while I watch the opening act from my dressing room."
Photo: Chelsea Lauren/REX/Shutterstock.
Lorde
The "Royals" singer admitted that her stage fright can be so severe that she gets sick.
She once told The West Australian in an interview, "I, like, totally threw up before my show last night. I am reduced by nerves. I can be completely crushed by feelings of all kinds [...] I get nervous, I get freaked out, I get, you know, the usual stuff."
Her method for combating stage fright? "[I] just try and tell myself that 'You'll be in your zone. The lights will be on and ... people will be cheering and, you know, it'll be okay," she told The West Australian.
Photo: BFA/REX/Shutterstock.
Adele
Adele’s been very open about her battles with anxiety and stage fright, once flat out saying to Rolling Stone that, “I'm scared of audiences."
How scared? "One show in Amsterdam, I was so nervous I escaped out the fire exit. I've thrown up a couple of times. Once in Brussels, I projectile vomited on someone.”
She added, "My nerves don't really settle until I'm offstage." But she found strength from another singer: Beyoncé.
"I was about to meet Beyoncé and I had a full-blown anxiety attack," she told Rolling Stone. “Then she popped in looking gorgeous, and said, 'You’re amazing! When I listen to you I feel like I’m listening to God.’”
Photo: David Fisher/REX/Shutterstock.
Beyoncé
When your nickname is Sasha Fierce, it's hard to believe that you could ever be scared by a performance. But Beyoncé has spoken about being nervous before major moments, just like everyone else.
She was scared before releasing her 2013 self-titled album, and scared of fans seeing her in Life Is But A Dream.
Her worst experience with fear? Before her 2004 Grammy performance with Prince.
Beyoncé told Giant Magazine, " Walking into rehearsals, I was just so overwhelmed and nervous." She said, "I was so scared and in my shell during rehearsals" that Prince actually had to tell her to "belt it out."
Photo: David Fisher/REX/Shutterstock.
Emma Watson
It's hard to believe that the woman who played Hermione Granger could be scared of anything, but Emma Watson has suffered from stage fright on occasion.
Before her big speech about feminism at the United Nations, Watson told Elle UK that, "I was very nervous. It wasn’t an easy thing for me to do. It felt like: 'Am I going to have lunch with these people, or am I going to be eaten? Am I the lunch?'"
She also told Entertainment Weekly that after the Harry Potter movies, "I kind of bought into the hype of, 'Will they ever be able to play anything else?' It gave me a sense of paralysis and stage fright for a while."
Like any true Gryffindor, she got tired of being put in a box, and decided her desire to prove people wrong was stronger than her fear.
Photo: Variety/REX/Shutterstock.
Harry Styles
The One Directioner may seem to be cool as a cucumber, but really, he used to battle stage fright with each performance.
According to HollywoodLife, in an old interview with We Love Pop, former 1D member Zayn Malik said, "We all wanna be good, but none of us suffer from stage fright."
But Liam added, "Harry does get quite scared, though. He went through a period of throwing up before he went on stage. I think he's over it now, though."
Photo: Jim Smeal/BEI/Shutterstock.
Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Lawrence has spoken openly about her battle with anxiety.
She told the New York Times that, "I have a prescription. I find a certain peace by thinking of 'me in public' as sort of an avatar self. You out there can have the avatar me. I can keep me. And I just try to acknowledge that this scrutiny is stressful, and that anyone would find it stressful."
When asked if she thinks it will ever be easier to be under scrutiny, Lawrence told E! News, "No, I'm always just very nervous. I never feel like, 'I've got this.' I'm always very nervous and aware of how quickly people can hate you and that scares me."
Photo: Jonathan Hordle/REX/Shutterstock.
Emma Roberts
Back in her Unfabulous days, Emma Roberts admitted that when it comes to singing, "I’ll be honest: I have a bit of stage fright," saying that having all eyes on her is nerve-wracking.
Years later, Roberts admitted that she still has some stage fright in front of big audiences.
The actress told the L.A. Times, "I have stage fright. I can't ever do theater because I would pee my pants." She added, "It's way too nerve-racking. There's a comfort in being able to mess up when you're on a movie set."
Photo: Matt Baron/BEI/Shutterstock.
Hayden Panettiere
Playing a singer helped Hayden Panettiere overcome her stage fright. She once said about her role on Nashville, "The show, I feel like, is an amazing second step for me because I love music and I've always had such terrible stage fright."
She credited performing as an alter ego for the success, saying, "It's one thing when you put yourself out there (as a solo artist), it's another thing when you're playing a character."
She added, "Beyoncé has her alter ego, and people create these alter egos because it seems like a little bit more protection when you put yourself out there for all to see."
Photo: Jim Smeal/BEI/Shutterstock.
Katy Perry
In 2010, Katy Perry got emotional during a performance of "Firework" at the Radio 1 Teen Awards in London. But it wasn't the song's message that got to her, it was her stage fright.
She said, "I still feel nervous performing to crowds. It's not that I don't feel ready, but I worry that they'll rush the stage as they're all screaming my name or I feel like a wanna yack!"
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