Adele is world famous but maintains her privacy and dignity in an over-exposed world – and every other celebrity in the world should take note, says Polly Hudson
She’s acclaimed, adored and admired – but we’ve been under-appreciating Adele all this time.
So mesmerised by the singing and songwriting stuff that another of her skills has gone largely unrecognised. This week it came into laser sharp focus. The woman could teach a masterclass on being famous.
Adele shows all moaning celebrities that it’s entirely possible to be one of the most well-known people in the world and live a very private life.
She retains an Old Hollywood-esque air of mystique, only being seen when she chooses to be. Months go by between posts to her 67.3 million social media followers.
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And then, when she has something to promote, she pops up again, but thoughtfully, sparingly, rather than in an exhausting, all-out media blitz. She controls her fame, rather than the other way round.
Of course, Adele’s enormous talent affords her the luxury of never having to court publicity or attention. She doesn’t need to drum up interest in her music – people are just naturally interested, they genuinely care.
So she doesn’t have to worry about keeping her profile up between projects, mugging for cameras, attending events she doesn’t really feel like going to, speaking to people she doesn’t really like.
She never compromises her integrity, so presumably doesn’t feel resentful about the way the whole system works, which is why she can be so generous when she has a new album out.
This week she did a spontaneous Instagram Live – basically a video call to the world – and it felt like a gift. It wasn’t a stage managed, slick appearance, it was completely natural, completely her.
Adele was just in her house, with no make-up on, shouting at her dogs to be quiet and not poo inside. She’d never done an Instagram Live before – obviously – so had no idea how it worked.
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She’d Googled it, but her followers still had to offer advice with some technical bits. And because she’s been so careful with what she shares, every snippet she offered was gratefully devoured by her fans.
We learned what spice she gets at Nandos (medium) and what she orders if she has an Indian takeaway (korma). That she prefers tea to coffee, EastEnders to Coronation Street, apple juice to orange. That she supports the Free Britney movement (“Of course!”) and that she definitely doesn’t consider a hot dog a sandwich.
When asked what her new record was about she answered with her trademark wit, “Divorce, babe, divorce,” and played a snippet of the first single.
If it isn’t clear, none of what she said was particularly groundbreaking – her favourite colour is green, by the way – but that’s irrelevant.
She allowed some access, showed respect for the people who support her, and reassured them that despite the success, the weight loss, the LA lifestyle, she’s as down to earth as ever.
She invited her public in, but didn’t let them overstay their welcome. Her boundaries remained intact. Afterwards, everyone was happy, satisfied, neither side felt compromised or taken advantage of.
Bravo, Adele. Every other celebrity in the world, take note.
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