Hilary Duff Doesn’t Remember Recording the Anthem of a Generation

If you came of age in the early aughts, then the song “What Dreams Are Made Of” is embedded deep in every cell of your being. If you think you don’t know the song, you’re wrong—you’ve heard it blasting out of car windows, at every karaoke bar, and at the gay pregame next door.

The singer of the banger in question, Hilary Duff, who we first met as Lizzie McGuire in 2001, is back with a new single, “Mature,” her first release in ten years. But while promoting the project, she dropped a confession about “What Dreams Are Made Of” that shattered my fragile little girl heart.

On Therapuss with Jake Shane, Shane asked Duff if she knew the song was going to be a hit. “Absolutely not,” she replied. “I don’t even remember recording it.”

“Some of the like, being in Italy for Lizzie McGuire (I remember), but then the rest of it filmed in Vancouver,” she continued. “I could barely remember any of that stuff.”

I’m sorry, what? She doesn’t remember making history? And altering the very fabric of the pop culture spacetime continuum? That song—a masterpiece, if you will—defined the essence of early-aughts girlhood. Personally, it’s seared so deep into my memory that hearing the words “hey now” triggers instant flashbacks to a sleepover at Keira’s house.

 

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“It was a weird time,” Duff said. “It technically wasn’t even my song—it was a Lizzie McGuire song.” She added, “Actually, when I sing it now, I feel a lot of joy. I just think there was such a separation back then—between me, my music, and Lizzie McGuire.” She did clarify that she does remember loving it while filming the movie.

In retrospect, it’s difficult to fathom what our childhood idols were actually going through during this time. To us, they were living the dream, but for them, it was a full-time job. Duff was only 13 when she started Lizzie McGuire, juggling fame, identity, and puberty under fluorescent Disney Channel lighting.

In Duff’s new single “Mature,” which is already climbing the charts, she reflects on her younger self, who was once told “you’re so mature for your age” by a man, now looking back with the wisdom to recognize it as manipulation. I love to see Hilary shed Lizzie McGuire’s butterfly persona but keep all the sparkle, and I couldn’t be more excited for this comeback era.

And don’t worry—she did tease the idea of singing “What Dreams Are Made Of” again. “If I were to ever go on tour again… just maybe… hypothetically,” she said.

Dare I say, this…is what dreams are made of???

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