The Tweenybop Throne

The next teen queen or another pop princess walking Disneyland8217;s fickle halls of fame?

Demi Lovato, 15, bounces onstage at Six Flags America, Washington, microphone in hand. 8220;How are you guys doing tonight?8221; she asks her fans, mostly girls a couple of years younger than she. They scream, cheer, wave their arms. This is one of over 50 concerts this summer for the Texas teenager who8217;s poised to become one more star in the Disney pantheon.

Born Demetria Devonne Lovato in Dallas, Demi has a big voice and a bigger smile, and exudes confidence in a loose black Pat Benatar T-shirt and black jeans. A pianist, guitarist and singer, she stars in Disney8217;s made-for-TV musical, Camp Rock, which just premiered on Disney Channel. Her first album of self-written songs comes out next year. Demi got her start on Barney 038; Friends seven years ago. She8217;s now following a tried-and-true formula for fame, stepping in line behind Miley Cyrus, Vanessa Hudgens, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera8212;all of whom got their start at the Mouse House, all eventually brushed by scandal.

Disney has marketed Camp Rock relentlessly, but Demi8217;s popularity is also due to the guitar-slinging Jonas Brothers, her co-stars in Camp Rock. She will open for them on their 43-city Burning Up Tour, which begins July 4. Demi8217;s stepfather-manager Eddie De La Garza, will be with her on the tour. Dianna De La Garza, her mother, is a country music singer. 8220;I got my voice from her,8221; Demi says. She and Demi8217;s two sisters, Dallas, 20, and Madison, 6, are packing for the family8217;s move to Los Angeles in the fall.

Dianna worries about her daughter but trusts her. Demi does seem sensible. A Christian, she says a group prayer with her band before performing. She sometimes wears on a chain a plain silver ring, inscribed with the words 8220;True Love Waits8221;. Demi says: 8220;I went through a hard time at middle school with girls bullying me.8221; One day, she called her mother and said, 8220;I want home school.8221; 8220;I8217;d gone through so much rejection I couldn8217;t act anymore,8221; Demi remembers. 8220;But I started missing it, and once I got back into it, things starting rolling.8221;

She8217;s already adept at handling interviews. 8220;The way I want to be a role model is not by not making mistakes,8221; she says. In her business, mistakes are seized upon. Miley Cyrus, 15, star of Hannah Montana, was burned by her decision to sit for a Vanity Fair photo shoot with her back exposed. But Demi hasn8217;t succumbed to temptation yet, at least with regard to the Jonas Brothers.

A life under constant scrutiny does not discourage Demi, who says she was born for show business. Next year, her movie The Princess Protection Program comes out. In the fall, Lovato begins filming for her new Disney series, Welcome to Mollywood. But for now, it8217;s a ride on the roller coasters at Six Flags after the concert8212;they kept the park open just for her8212;then a night bus to the next city.
-Laura Yao The Washington Post