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Selena Gomez on Justin Bieber: 'I was a victim to certain abuse'

Premiere Of 'Dolittle'
Premiere Of 'Dolittle'

Selena Gomez is hitting the interview circuit upon the release of her newest studio album Rare, and she's not holding anything back.

The singer recently opened up about the album and its tracklist, touching on the first single Lose You To Love Me which was her first musical drop in nearly five years.

Gomez didn't shy away from being blunt about the fact that the hit was written about ex-boyfriend Justin Bieber, with honesty that seemed almost necessary in talking about a relationship that was under so much scrutiny in the public eye.

【ギャラリー】Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez25

She told Lulu Garcia-Navarro of NPR that the song left her hopeful, that it was a way of finding closure in her relationship with Bieber (which she confirmed later on in the interview):

"I felt I didn't get a respectful closure, and I had accepted that, but I know I needed some way to just say a few things that I wish I had said. It's not a hateful song; it's a song that is saying - I had something beautiful and I would never deny that it wasn't that. It was very difficult and I'm happy it's over."

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Things took a startling turn when the singer opened up answering a question about remembering the difficult moments and how it's affected her in the aftermath:

"I've found the strength in it. It's dangerous to stay in a victim mentality. And I'm not being disrespectful, I do feel I was a victim to certain abuse ... "

When asked to clarify if she meant 'emotional abuse', Gomez clarified:

"Yes, and I think that it's something that - I had to find a way to understand it as an adult. And I had to understand the choices I was making. As much as I definitely don't want to spend the rest of my life talking about this, I am really proud that I can say I feel the strongest I've ever felt and I've found a way to just walk through it with as much grace as possible."

Gomez and Bieber dated on and off for nearly eight years, dating back as early as 2010.

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The pair split for good in March 2018 before Bieber proposed to his now wife, Hailey Baldwin, that July.

Gomez released Lose You To Love Me a few short weeks after Bieber and Baldwin married for the second time in South Carolina.

The album Rare is presumably (and at parts, admittedly) about her relationship with Bieber, with the title track itself meaning so much to the star that she had the word tattooed on her neck earlier this year:

"I have always loved that song, and I always wanted it to be the title of the record. And I felt like it was a great complement to where I left off with my other singles, because it is honest and raw, and basically saying, 'I know I don't have it all, I'm not perfect, but I know that I deserve great, and I deserve love, and I deserve all of it, self-love.' It's just one of those things where it's a confidence thing, but without being cocky."