Selena Gomez’s surprise return into the music industry has sparked massive conversation between her fans. 

From her days as a child actor on the hit show Barney and Friends to her first album release, Stars Dance, Selena Gomez has been one of the most influential artists of her generation. Her fans have witnessed her roller coaster of a career, accompanied with her biggest accomplishments, and her most recent downfalls.

Even as a teenager, Gomez was an inspirational actor who many kids looked up to.

“I watched Selena Gomez on one of my favorite shows, Wizards of Waverly Place. I would say I looked up to her because she became successful at a very young age,” said sophomore Christina Rodriguez. “I thought it was amazing how she had multiple talents, like singing and acting.”

After her 2015 album release, Revival, Gomez declared that she was going to permanently leave the music industry, despite all the positive feedback. After spending her entire childhood and the beginning of her adulthood with her face on the big screen, she abruptly declared that her time was up.

It was clear that her mental health was deteriorating due to the pressures of being a well-known musician. Gomez also developed anxiety and depression, due to her auto-immune disease, Lupus. This, alongside her kidney transplant procedure in 2017, and her final breakup with Justin Bieber in March 2018, sent her on a long hiatus from music.

However, the opposite occurred. Fans saw her dabble in music again with the release of singles such as “Only You”, “Bad Liar”, “I Can’t Get Enough”, and “Wolves”,  with some as recent as 2019. Regardless, this is Gomez’s first time since 2015 where she is attempting to treat her fans with a new album, which could skyrocket her career even further. 

Now, after two years of being deprived of her music, Gomez surprised her fans with a brand new single, “Lose You To Love Me”, which was released on Oct 23. The release sent fans into a frenzy, and the song did not disappoint. The song currently stands at number 15 on the “Billboard Hot 100 Songs” list, and the music video has 133,436,557 views on YouTube as of Nov 12.

If that wasn’t enough, Gomez treated her fans to one more single, “Look At Her Now”,  just one day after the success of “Lose You To Love Me”.  Fans took it upon themselves to read into the deeper meaning behind both songs, and found one common theme: Justin Bieber. 

Her success continued to boom from there. On Nov 4, “Lose You To Love Me” reached number 1 on the “Billboard Top 100” list, proving that her music reaches people’s hearts, fast.

“Of course it depends on the person, but I definitely think [her music has] reached many fans hearts and souls,” said sophomore Sierra Bacchus. “She puts out content that people can relate to and it helps people cope and go through all of their issues.”

Specifically, one lyric from the first new single has drawn people’s attention: “In two months you replaced us/ Like it was easy/ Made me think I deserved it”. Diehard Gomez fans began to believe that this lyric was a clear reference to Bieber’s relationship with his wife, Hailey Bieber. Bieber proposed just months after his breakup with Gomez, making the timing a bit too close for comfort. 

Popular news sources such as USA Today, People’s Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, and Paper Magazine have also theorized her song inspiration. Despite this, both songs have received mostly positive feedback.

Gomez’s journey back to her roots is off to a great start, and it seems that fans are ready for more. 

“She is living proof that anything is possible if you put your mind to it,” said Bacchus.