Stevie Nicks’ Advice To Younger Pop Stars Is Something We Should All Be Listening To

You don’t have a decades-long career like Stevie Nicks’ without learning how to navigate the industry with skill and grace, so it’s unsurprising that the “Gold Dust Woman” singer would have a surplus of advice to offer the newer generations of musical stars. Nicks’ dedication to uplifting and educating these women is an empowering testament to Nicks’ steadfast “girl’s girl” energy.

Indeed, Nicks has never been one for unnecessary competition among females. (Even she and Christine McVie made a pact to stick together as sole women of Fleetwood Mac.) But even outside the context of the music industry, Nicks’ advice to these younger pop stars is something we should all be listening to.

Katy Perry: The Internet Is Malicious, and Rivals Are Stupid

Stevie Nicks undoubtedly benefits from having established her musical legacy in a pre-smartphone era. She doesn’t need to worry about her social media presence. She’s a household name with or without a viral TikTok video. Nevertheless, Stevie Nicks offered a moving piece of advice about the negative effects of online vitriol and the importance of not giving in to “rivals,” big or small.

In a 2022 interview with The New Yorker, Stevie Nicks recalled talking to Katy Perry at the Corinthia Hotel in London. This was around the same time Perry was in a “feud” with pop star Taylor Swift. “She said to me—this is probably ten years ago—she said, ‘So, Stevie, who are your rivals?’ And I said, ‘I don’t have rivals.’ And her big blue eyes got bigger and bluer.”

“I said, ‘No, Katy, I don’t, and neither do you. You are Katy Perry, you’re who you are, you do what you do, and you’re great at it. I’m Stevie Nicks, I do what I do, and I’m great at it,” Nicks continued. “We don’t have rivals. That’s just ridiculous. And she said, “Well, there’s like, the Taylor Swift army, and there’s, like, the Katy army, and there’s like—’ And I was, like, ‘That’s just bulls***. You have to just walk away from that. Don’t carry that around in your mind because then they’re winning this game.’”

Chappell Roan: You Have To Be Your Own Advocate

Cult-favorite-turned-massive-pop-star Chappell Roan received a lot of flack throughout 2024 for her decisions to call off performances at a moment’s notice, turn down certain business offers, and her unwavering demands for privacy when she’s not “clocked in” on stage. Many critics have painted this behavior as entitled or rude. Stevie Nicks, of course, knows better.

“Me and a friend of mine went and looked at her schedule,” Nicks said in an October 2024 Rolling Stone interview. “It was outrageous. What she’s already done and then what she’s going to do. It’s as bad as any schedule we ever did, and she’s new, and she’s young. I said, ‘They’ll burn her out if that’s what they want to do, because there’s always somebody to replace you.’”

As an industry veteran, the former Fleetwood Mac frontwoman is no stranger to the mental and emotional effects of the pressure that comes with being an international rockstar. “It must make them all very fearful,” Nicks mused. “That’s why it’s good that Chappell just said, ‘Well, go ahead, replace me. I’m canceling because I’m not going to drop dead for all you people.”

Lorde: Be Weird Even If People Don’t Get It

Whether shaking the tambourine in Fleetwood Mac or dancing with a scarf-laden microphone stand as a solo artist, Stevie Nicks has always stayed true to herself and her creative vision. That’s why she’s always felt such a kindred connection to New Zealand pop artist Lorde. Nicks once said she could’ve been the third woman in Fleetwood Mac, had the timelines been different. Stevie Nicks’ admiration for Lorde reveals some of her most inspiring advice, which is to be yourself, no matter what others think.

“I think she’s just as odd as you or me,” Nicks said during her 2022 conversation with The New Yorker. “She’s a strange girl, and so are we. She’s a really great writer, and she’s really good at doing her own recorded stuff. I don’t think that any real serious songwriter is ever going to have a problem staying connected to the dream world that allows us to write songs.”

“We want to have our serious side and all that, but you can’t take yourself too seriously,” she continued. “When you keep music in your life, I think it just changes you and pulls you out of a deep hole. [Lorde] just has to keep doing what she’s doing.”

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