Mandy Moore looked back on her role as a pop star during the late 1990s in a recent podcast appearance. Speaking with Kylie Kelce on the Not Gonna Lie podcast on July 17, the 41-year-old singer and actress shared why she considered herself to be the most uneventful among her contemporaries in that era. She also discussed her relationships, or lack thereof, with other well-known pop icons like Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Jessica Simpson.
Comparing Careers with Her 90s Peers
Mandy debuted her single “Candy” in 1999, the same year Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Jessica Simpson launched their careers. Despite this timing, Mandy feels she never reached the same level of fame or intensity as the other three stars. On the podcast, she admitted,
“I feel like I was the youngest and the most boring… out of the four of us,”
highlighting how she viewed her place in the group.
The Distance Between Mandy and Other Pop Icons
When asked about her connections with fellow pop stars, Mandy expressed that she never really crossed paths with them due to the massive gap in their levels of fame at the time. She explained,
“I would never have been able to cross paths with them. They were, like, superstars. They were on this level of success that I’ve never known.”
This reveals how separated she felt from the superstar status of her peers.
A Different Path Without Industry Pressure
Mandy attributed much of this difference in experience to her age and approach as a young artist. Beginning her career at 15, she described simply doing her own thing without the pressures that came with intense fame. She said,
“Nobody told me how I needed to dress or how I needed to answer questions or what lane to sort of occupy or how to present myself to the world,”
emphasizing that she was fortunate to avoid the burden of strict image management that other stars faced.
Legacy and Continuing Impact
While Mandy Moore may see herself as a quieter presence among 90s pop icons, her reflections illustrate the contrasting experiences within the same era of stardom. Her candid insights offer a unique perspective on fame’s varying pressures, and her story adds depth to the narrative of 90s pop culture. Meanwhile, fans of the genre continue to follow the evolving careers of these stars, with some recently unveiling new music, signaling that the era’s influence persists today.
