Keke Palmer Calls Her Teen Years the 'Darkest' Period of Her Life, Says She Felt 'Traumatized by Fame'

Ingrid Vasquez, Lizzie HymanSun, June 14, 2026 at 11:59 AM UTC

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Keke Palmer in 2007; Keke Palmer in 2026Credit: Frank Micelotta/Getty; Gilbert Flores/Billboard via Getty -

Keke Palmer reflected on her struggles with fame during her teen years, calling it the "darkest" period of her life

She shared feeling isolated and numb, believing others only wanted her to appear happy and smiling

Palmer said this experience led her to create a protective persona, which she later realized she had locked away

Keke Palmer is reflecting on her past.

The multi-hyphenate, 32, sat down with Whoopi Goldberg, 70, during the Tribeca Festival's Storytellers series on Monday, June 8, where the two discussed a broad range of topics, including the "darkest" periods they've experienced.

Palmer shared that her darkest times go back to her "teen years."

Keke Palmer in 2006Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty

"I remember it was just nobody could relate to me, and the thing about my family is my family has always been so awesome," she said. "But there was a period where we were all being traumatized by fame, and they had a more relatable experience to the trauma of the fame than I did, right?... because I was the star. They were the people in the star shadow."

The Baby, This Is Keke Palmer podcast host said that it was easier for her family to understand one another than to understand her.

Keke Palmer at the "I Love Boosters" Los Angeles Premiere held at DGA Theater on May 13, 2026Credit: Jesse Grant/Variety via Getty

"I just was so sad, you guys. I really was so sad, you know," she said. "I was so sad that I wished I could feel the pain of it because it was not physical. It was so deep in my soul and in my heart that I felt numb or something like that because it was like no way to get it out of me, you know what I mean?"

Palmer's acting career began as a child after she landed the role of Queen Latifah's niece in Barbershop 2: Back in Business. She then shot to fame following breakout roles in the 2006 film Akeelah and the Bee and the Nickelodeon sitcom True Jackson, VP, which ran from 2008 to 2011.

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During her earlier years in the public eye, Palmer recalled a moment when she was in her room, "crawled" into a corner, and "literally visualized" herself.

"I just decided that nobody really wants to get to know me and the more that I try to get people to know the real me, the more that they just talk to this character, the more that they just want me to be happy and smiling," she said.

"If I show any complexity of my emotions, or I show that I'm a kid, I show that I'm sad, I show that I'm down, I show that I'm tired, that I'm exhausted from these things, they just get mad at me, and I don't want my family to lose everything," Palmer continued.

Keke Palmer with Whoopi Goldberg during the 2026 Tribeca Festival at SVA Theater on June 08, 2026Credit: Dia Dipasupil/Getty

The Passwordhost said, "That was the day that Keke Palmer was truly born," as she promised to "protect" her inner self.

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"And inside I just knew like that sensitive character, that person that gets tired, that gets, you know, down, that feels low, that nobody wants to hear it, so you keep it to yourself," Palmer explained. "It was kind of like you don't deserve type of vibe, you know what I mean? Because I felt that was the only way to protect myself. That was the lowest, and it went so far that I forgot that I did it. I forgot that I locked that key up."

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”