I think being cast as Rizzo in my high school production of Grease—only to discover that every time I sang in public it sounded like someone failing to start a lawnmower—ruined my career as a pop star.
But for Lily Allen, it was having children. Or so she joked, during a recent appearance on the Radio Times podcast. Lily Allen is funny. Listening to all 50 minutes of her interview, alongside her friend-from-birth and new podcast co-host Miquita Oliver, this much is obvious. Also, for numbers fans out there, the subject of Allen being a mother, and how it’s affected her career, is really only addressed about 47 minutes into that 50-minute podcast. Which I think says something about how we treat parenthood in popular culture—but that’s a matter for another day.
The question I have seen a lot of people (mainly young women) asking since is: is it true? Does having children ruin your career? Which is a very valid and very interesting question, and—like all valid and interesting questions—doesn’t have a clear answer.
Being a female pop star in the early 21st century is a fairly uncommon career. It’s also one that, I imagine, wasn’t particularly compatible with health, motherhood, sobriety, or relationships in general. It is unlikely, if you’re reading this, that you’re going to become a female pop star in the early 21st century, either, if that helps put your mind at ease at all.
There’s further context to those quotes that’s worthy of consideration, too. As Allen says: “I chose stepping back and concentrating on [my children], and I’m glad that I’ve done that because I think they’re fairly well-rounded people, fingers fucking crossed.” It was a choice. It was a choice informed by her own childhood and her instinct and her resources. She could afford to take time out, her parents weren’t around much when she was young, and, since having children, she has now become a very successful actor and been nominated for an Olivier Award for her performance in 2:22 A Ghost Story. The pattern of her life and her decisions, how she makes and spends money, where her priorities lie, is all as nuanced as it is for you or me or anyone.