Heart’s Ann Wilson has opened up about “cruel and nasty” body shaming that triggered anxiety during the height of her career.

“Anxiety about that really peaked for me in the 1980s when Heart was having its biggest commercial success,” the singer recalled on “Mind Wide Open,” an IGTV series and podcast hosted by Chris Cornell’s daughter Lily Cornell Silver.

Wilson and Silver discussed body shaming faced by female artists, specifically Ann’s experience during the 1980s MTV era when most female artists felt pressure to not only be great singers but to look like models.

“When that happens, you get into this really intense cross section of spotlights,” Wilson said. “And, on top of that, it was MTV days when you had to not only be in a band, you had to look like a model, you had to be able to sing and dance and act, and look just fantastic all the time from every angle.”

According to Wilson, the harshest body shaming came from critics assigned to cover Heart’s concerts.

“I kept getting criticized for not looking like a model. For being real,” Wilson claimed. “There were a couple of reviews I remember that were just so cruel. So personal and just cruel and nasty.”

Source: RTT Music News