14 Awful Celeb Photos That Make Us Question If Fame Is Worth it
Adoration, success and of course, piles of cash. What could be better than being rich and famous? Celebrities these days aren't just film stars or musicians; they're multifaceted and multi-million dollar brands unto themselves. While icons like Marilyn Monroe and James Dean had huge fashion followings, their private lives, embarrassing moments and personal struggles were mostly only written about in memoirs or after their deaths. These days, fame means constant scrutiny via all possible means. Social media combined with the click of the paparazzi cameras mean that the daily lives of celebs, including those moments they'd rather have kept to themselves, are there for the world to see. While some like Kim Kardashian lap up the attention, others like Amanda Bynes have clearly suffered under the harsh effects of the limelight.
Whether they were snapped unawares at a weak moment or had a mishap on stage, the internet is rife with images of celebrities at weak or embarrassing moments. While most of them manage to bounce back, there's definitely some tragic stories that make us question whether the price of fame is worth it. Having millions of fans can mean having no privacy and the inability to lead a normal life. For some celebs, walking down the street and going about life like a normal person has proved impossible.
A picture is worth a thousand words and some of these images make us think that being a nobody might be preferable sometimes! The following are 14 photos that make us question if fame is worth the hassle.
15 Kristen Stewart
With her plaid shirts, distressed jeans, and aviators, K-Stew is usually the queen of carefully cultivated nonchalance. The paps love to snap Kristen out and about on the town. Whether she's with a boyfriend or girlfriend, being Kristen Stewart usually looks damn cool. But obviously, the price of fame means that on bad days, having the paps in your face can get a little too much. Kristen joined the ranks of the many celebs to lash out at a camera man when she mouthed off at a photographer, blaring all the cuss words loud and clear! Her angry spiel was captured on YouTube and the video shows Stewart hiding behind a gate and screaming “you don't deserve to breathe the same air as I do!” Obviously caught on a bad day -- if K-Stew can lose her pout and her cool, fame must be tough sometimes, and we're glad to be free of constant cameras.
14 Katy Perry
Katy Perry's like a real-life Powderpuff girl, but even she's not immune to the occasional media-fail. Over the years, she's sported every single hair color that you can imagine, appearing on stage in all the candy costumes and pastel pink tiered dresses a girl could ever want. More importantly, Katy has shown resilience when times have been tough -- during her divorce from ex-husband Russell Brand, Katy refused to alter her concert schedule. Her documentary shows her shaking off the heartbreak moments before stepping into the elevator to appear and perform before thousands of fans. Clearly, Katy Perry is a total boss, but with all those cute concert stunts and impressive bubblegum pink costumes, something is bound to go wrong. At the MTV Latin America Awards, Katy dove into a giant cake -- a stunt that went front when she awkwardly fell on it and slipped off. It was an awkward moment that makes us wonder whether being in the audience is a little easier most of the time.
13 Whitney Houston
An incredible icon and singer, Whitney Houston's life definitely had its difficult moments. Her struggle with addiction meant that the stress and pressure of fame, as well as of relationships, tipped the balance more than once in her life. Even when she was performing, making music and being fabulous, there were moments when the strain really showed for Whitney, particularly later when her substance abuse became more marked. Everyone has felt the soaring euphoria of her one-in-a-million voice, and seeing photos where Whitney was looking seriously strung out while performing makes us wonder whether the worldwide adoration and success she achieved was worth the tough times she suffered. Listening to her music these days, after her death, gives us all the chance to reflect on the lesson that sometimes the price of fame is way, way too high. And being a celebrity, for Whitney, might not have been worth it.
12 Courtney Love
A country girl from the tiny country of New Zealand, Courtney Love is most famous for being the girlfriend of the late Kurt Cobain, as well as the lead singer of '90s grunge band, Hole. Courtney was the tabloid's first gutter-princess. With her bad manners and goth-princess style, Love is a worldwide symbol of rebellious femininity -- she's never conformed to the norm and refuses to do so -- and that's why we love her. But Courtney's life has certainly had it's ups and downs -- she used heroin while pregnant, offered a Vanity Fair writer the chance to snort Kurt Cobain's ashes and has had more than several public drug-affected meltdowns. She showed up to a New York Times interview naked and drunk, and as pictured above, performed drunk and flashed the audience. The vagabond rockstar life of Love might be appealing for some, but most of us would agree that drugs and fame don't mix and Courtney Love shows when it's just not worth it.
11 Michael Jackson
Who could forget this moment and all of its repercussions. Like Whitney, Michael Jackson is remembered for his amazing and irreplaceable contribution to the arts, the music industry, and an entire cultural movement of pop music. He had decades of success, from his baby years in the Jackson 5 to his heyday with hits like “Thriller,” “Beat It,” and “Black or White” -- it's clear Michael Jackson is iconic, adored and will never be forgotten. But fame definitely took it's toll on MJ -- the world watched with an almost perverse fascination as he commenced plastic surgery that made him completely unrecognizable compared to the good-looking teenager he once was. In 2002, photos went viral all over the world of MJ dangling his nine-month-old son Blanket over a balcony in Berlin. The photo called his mental health into serious question and created a backlash worldwide around whether MJ was fit to be a parent. This was a definite moment when the price fame was too high -- for both father and son.
10 Lindsay Lohan
Ah, Lindsay Lohan. One of the top-tier examples of when the price of fame is too high. Lindsay is a low-hanging fruit when it comes to nasty photos. Being out on the town and affected by alcohol and drugs has led Lindsay into a number of nasty situations, including jail time. Over the last decade, the paparazzi has been obsessed with Lindsay's wild antics because let's face it, she's a good bet. While Lindsay is beloved for her kid-success in The Parent Trap and the infamous chick-flick Mean Girls, the price of being a child-star has been demonstrated with the struggle she's had getting her act together under the limelight as an adult. With all the rehab and therapy, Lindsay isn't a write-off just yet -- her 30s might prove to be a whole lot more chill than her 20s. Still, she's the poster-child for photos of fame getting a bit rough.
9 Snooki
Jersey Shore star “Snooki” -- Nicole Polizzi -- clawed her way to fame through a huge ego and bratty behavior on reality television. Potty-mouthed, defiant and full of attitude, Snooki gained a reputation very quickly and wanted to be the most famous (or infamous) star of Jersey. Not seeming to have a clue about what's publicly acceptable and what's just embarrassing, Snooki was arrested for being drunk and a nuisance in 2010. This trashy moment was definitely one that made us glad we weren't famous, since Snooki did the whole thing super badly, yelling “I'm Snooki, I'm the best thing in this town… you can't tell me what to do” -- blah, blah, blah. Snooki also shows that the life of reality TV stars and their trajectory to fame is often spotted with desperate publicity attempts and a much quicker rate of decline once the limelight shifts off them. Famous? Yes. Appealing? Actually, we think not.
8 Rihanna
They were young, in-love, and crazy famous. The Chris Brown and Rihanna saga was a scary reminder that domestic violence can strike anywhere and at anytime. While there's been a huge rise of awareness globally on violence in intimate relationships, when Rhianna's face was plastered all over the news, the world went literally cray with rage. The bruises and swelling on the beautiful, distinctive and incredibly famous face of Rhianna was a shocking reminder that being a famous celebrity isn't a guarantee of immunity from violence. In fact, it can often increase it. Rhianna is far from the only female celebrity who has suffered at the hands of a famous partner (think Ike and Tina), and having the world watching the heartbreak must have been devastating. This was definitely a moment when anonymity must have been desired, although in retrospect, Rhianna has raised so much awareness about domestic violence and brought this issue to attention, a small consolation for the price she paid.
7 Justin Bieber
Most of us know what it's like to show up to work hungover and perhaps have a sneaky trip to the toilet hoping our colleagues turn a blind eye. This isn't the case if you're Justin Bieber, who vommed on stage during a concert in 2012, a moment that was posted all over YouTube. Freshly 18, Bieber was on the Believe tour and claimed he had a stomach bug, so props to him for getting up on stage in the first place. But alcohol or no alcohol, not being able to vomit in private is a pretty unfortunate price to pay for fame. Having the cameras rolling on you almost 24/7 and millions of fans present during your most embarassing moment must have been fairly un-fun. Bieber has had his fair share of publicity for shenanigans of the young-and-restless variety, and while some would say it's served to increase his popularity with the live-fast-die-young crowd, a stage spew probably doesn't make the list of desirable rebellious media attention. Definitely a time we were glad to be in the crowd.
6 Miley Cyrus
From Hannah Montana to Twerking, Miley is a millennial babe who likes to keep it interesting, but she's had more than one brush with bad behavior that made us glad we aren't child-stars dealing with constant media attention. At one point, Miley was video-taped attacking paparazzi, with reports saying it wasn't they first time. Showing off her athleticism, Miley got physical and obviously felt seriously threatened, looking anxiously into the lens of whatever camera it was that stole this shot. This photo is pre-short hair Miley, and while she's definitely gone up in style, hopefully Miley has gone down in the temper department since then. While we don't blame her for losing her cool, being famous means coming up with strategies the rest of us don't have to worry about to keep from flying off the handle! All these paparazzi attacks make us question whether being an uber celeb is really all it's cracked up to be.
5 Christina Aguilera
Was it fake tan? Was it blood? Christina Aguilera performed at Etta James' funeral in 2012 and sadly, nobody was thinking about her voice. The internet went viral posting closeups of the trickle down the inside of Christina's leg while she paid her final tribute to the music goddess Etta James. Unfortunately, all that the world wanted to talk about for weeks after was that trickle of liquid and what it may or may not have been. Christina publicly stated that it was fake tan liquid, not blood, and considering the pics, we're inclined to believe her. If you've had a spray tan on a summer's day and had to walk down the street, you'll know a little of Christina's pain. But performing in front of what was essentially the entire world (at a funeral) and coming under scrutiny really ups the ante. Here is an unfortunate malfunction that makes us glad we weren't Christina Aguilera at that moment in time.
4 Britney Spears
Another easy target, nobody would want to be photographed like this. This infamous photo was a low point in the career of Britney Spears. The household name had a snowballing public meltdown over a few years, before finally getting over the hump, or so it seems at least. Britney's shaved head stands out because it reminds us that even the prettiest, most successful blonde pop-star's can fold up entirely if they're not supported in the crazy jungle of fame. Britney was the poster girl of sweet '90s pop and seeing her unravel with the stress and pressure of adulthood seemed like a symbol of millennium media culture. The pressure of the industry was unsustainable, and the shaved head was proof. Britney suffered serious mental health issues during the period of her breakdown and the media attention was unrelenting and probably incredibly unhelpful. Seeing Britney go down was the quintessential example that makes us wonder if fame is worth it.
3 Amanda Bynes
As a teenager, Amanda Bynes rocked Nickelodeon and was beloved in teen comedies like She's The Man and What a Girl Wants. What has happened since is a maze of tabloid reports, interviews, twitter posts and general speculation. One thing is for sure -- Amanda Bynes has demonstrated, like Britney and Lindsay, that the price of fame at a young age and the pressure of having to perform constantly, on- and off-camera, is too much to bear. Amanda Bynes' breakdown in 2012 and subsequent episodes in recent years have sparked an ongoing discussion involving much debate about mental health. Unfortunately, Bynes' public breakdowns in recent years have been the butt of cruel memes and gossip articles, while others have used her as an example of the way our society refuses to take mental health seriously. Bynes' very public struggle begs the question of why we view celeb suffering as entertainment instead of tragedy, which, particularly in her case, it is. The image above captured by paparazzi during a bad moment confirms that in some cases, the price of fame is completely not worth it.
2 Fergie
The internet went crazy with the super-embarrassing closeup images of former Black-Eyed Peas lead singer, Fergie, peeing her pants on stage. Enough said, right? While Fergie is a super-rich, beautiful, glamorous and talented woman, even she isn't immune to the disastrous results of ignoring a call from nature. This pic is proof that being famous can be far from glamorous and that the pressure of being on tour, on stage, and forced to be on a schedule where millions of people are waiting for you might just mean that you can't even go to the bathroom before rushing on stage for a set. If you've ever had an embarrassing moment while out shopping or driving somewhere far from a bathroom (and let's face it, it's far more common than anyone admits), hopefully it was a relatively private accident. When you're Fergie, your little accident is fodder for ridicule on the internet forever, which most would agree is definitely a high price to pay for fame.
1
Sources: nme.com, plasticsurgerymagz.com, complex.com, usmagazine.com
