How Jesse McCartney Avoided the Stereotypical Child Star Downfall

But the former teen sensation, whose signature hit “Beautiful Soul” came out almost 20 years ago, may be selling himself short in the grown-up department.

Thinking about his own relatively undramatic experience coming of age in the spotlight, “I’m lucky I didn’t really have any major public meltdowns or crazy, stressful moments, at least in front of the camera,” McCartney noted. “At least not yet. I’ve been able to maintain a relatively sane and normal life considering all that has gone on, particularly at that age.”

He attributed his less dramatic arc to his “great family and friends,” he continued, “and just a solid foundation of people that I had around me at that time. Of course there’s things I went through that I think any normal teenager would go through, just in a public way, but I don’t have any regrets.”