ilary Duff is the girl-next door, who just happens to be an international brand name and triple threat. With a hit TV series, blockbuster movies, chart-topping singles, her own line of clothing and accessories - Stuff by Hilary Duff for Target - and even a steamy romance with rocker Joel Madden, the lead singer for Good Charlotte, Hilary is poised to become a celebrity powerhouse.
Unlike her peers, Hilary Duff has made little tabloid news, opting instead to keep her head in the business side of show-business. Hilary is best known in the title role in the Disney Channel hit "Lizzie McGuire". Her first album, "Metamorphosis," debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200, and eventually rose to #1 in the following weeks. If that weren't enough, her Stuff line made $5 million in its first year in stores. All this and she's barely out of teenagehood.
Here's what the successful actress/singer/businesswoman has to say about all the things that have kept her on track and out of the headlines.
On family: "We're still a very tight-knit family, even though we live apart a lot. And now Haylie and I get to work together more and more. We're really close, my sister and I are best friends and we get along so well. She is so talented and inspiring to me. She's my role model. And I also totally look up to my mom. She just doesn't let anybody take advantage of me. People might call that a stage mom."
On fame: "It's crazy and so surreal. I feel like such a normal person, yet everybody around the world knows my music, my movie, my name and my face. It's crazy sometimes, but I'm so flattered. It's a good feeling."
On her relationship with Aaron Carter: "He was my first real boyfriend and we really were in love, but we were, like, fourteen! Who cares?!"
On acting: "I know I can handle dramatic roles, but I don't think I should have to play a young mother on crack to prove it."
On her style: "I'm a real girly girl. I love clothes. I can't control myself. I have a huge fetish for shoes and clothes and make-up. I'm the kind of person who doesn't like to wear things over and over again."
On tabloids: "I'm not scandalous. I think it's actually embarrassing to be in those, yet some people will do anything to be in those magazines. I'm happy with who I am, and I'm happy with the way people portray me. If it's too normal, than that's their opinion."
On Britany Spears: "I'm not anywhere close to being a mom, but I hope that people leave her alone so she can have some normalcy and focus on her children."
On keeping grounded: "My peers who are my age who go out and party and are all over the magazines, they do it all for the attention. I go out to clubs sometimes, but I have a totally separate group of friends outside the business, friends who are not actors, and we go out, but we also know there's a front door and a back door, and there's one you don't get seen at. And I don't mean that in a mean way."
On making music with her boyfriend: "I felt a little nervous when the album was coming out because I did it with Joel [Madden], and you never really know what's going to happen, but it was cool to actually feel like you're making music, and then to have the album be #1 for two weeks in a row"
On losing weight: "[After eating small meals throughout the day] I saw such a big difference so fast! Now I'm like, 'Yes, this is awesome!' And I'm still full all the time, ...I like to look normal."
On her charity work for Kids With A Cause: "We raise so much money for hospitals, but it's not just about that. Anybody can come up with a bunch of money to give to somebody. It's about going to a hospital and hanging out with the kids and dancing and singing with them or giving underprivileged kids a chance to go to a theme park for a day or rebuilding a playground. I love it so much. It's really gratifying."
Her advice: "In high school, kids deal with such harsh things that people don't realize can really affect their entire lives. They are so interested in getting the boyfriends and wearing low cut shirts so the boys will like them. That shouldn't be their goal. They shouldn't do things for other people, they should do things if they have dreams of their own and really work hard for that."
