Demi Lovato: I Loved My Dad Even Though Relationship Was ‘Difficult’

Demi Lovato and her father, Patrick Lovato, 53, were not on speaking terms when he died suddenly on June 23 — they hadn’t been in nearly half a decade. “But at the end of the day he’s still my dad,” Demi sweetly said on Good Morning America on June 27. In the new interview the 20-year-old singer explained her complicated relationship with her father, how she’s handling his sudden death, and the amazing lengths she’s going to to remember him.

Demi Lovato Speaks Out About Father’s Death

“I’m handling it okay,” Demi told Robin Roberts on Good Morning America. “My father and I didn’t have the most ideal relationship but at the end of the day he’s still my dad.”

Demi and her father had been estranged for nearly five years, the singer revealed in an interview with New York Daily News. Like her, Patrick was also struggling with mental health and addiction problems, and Demi revealed that she cut off communication with him after he “let her down” over and over again.

“It’s difficult,” Demi continued. “I grew up with him and he’s a wonderful person, but I’m handling it okay.”