Jay Shetty & Anitta ON 6 Ways to Heal Your Inner Child

In this On Purpose episode, Jay Shetty welcomes Grammy-nominated global superstar Anitta, a leading figure in Latin American music.

Known for her energetic performances and bold personality, Anitta's album Versions of Me surpassed 1 billion streams on Spotify, which earned her a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist in 2023.

The artist openly discusses with Jay her spiritual practices that help maintain her well-being and authenticity. She opens up about the duality of her identity, balancing her stage persona with her true self, Larissa, and the importance of nurturing both. She shares her journey of overcoming comparisons, societal expectations, and the pressure to maintain a certain image.

Good Vibes

At the beginning of her career, Anitta focused on seizing every opportunity on performance days. However, she explained to Jay Shetty that her approach changed over time. She now prioritizes her mental health, focusing on relaxation and preparation for her shows. She starts her days with meditation and listens to mantras meant to ensure that she is in the right mindset so she can connect with her audience.

The singer engages in different spiritual practices to bring her into alignment and keep her in a high vibrational state. She told Jay Shetty that she does sessions with a shaman and Kundalini yoga to actively manage her energy. She especially cares for her state of mind on show days, to ensure she can deliver the best performance for her fans. The artist believes in the power of discipline and the ability to control our emotional state, regardless of external influences.

No Two Lives Are Identical

The Brazilian singer discussed with Jay Shetty the emotional and psychological impacts of comparison exacerbated by social media. She believes that being constantly exposed to the seemingly perfect lives of others inevitably leads to comparing yourself to them. This can, in turn, significantly decrease your energy and self-worth. Moreover, Anitta emphasizes that these comparisons are often unfair - people have different backgrounds and access to opportunities, and their personal circumstances differ. Everyone's journey is unique; you will never be 100% the same as someone else.

Anitta opened up to Jay Shetty about her journey to self-love. She used to focus on her work and neglect her health. After one of her songs hit number one globally as the first solo song by a Latina, she felt on top of the world. However, the decline of her health made her re-evaluate her lifestyle and mindset. To do so, she went to a retreat, where she had the chance to disconnect from modern distractions and engage in self-reflection under the supervision of a shaman.

The artist reconnected with her inner child during the retreat and realized the importance of self-acceptance. Now, she focuses more on her personal well-being rather than on external validation. She explained that fulfillment from external success is an illusion - you need to look inward and find the strength to know, to love ,and accept yourself.

Material Growth Is Tricky

Sometimes, pursuing success involves acquiring more material possessions. Anitta and Jay Shetty agree that having more things is not the recipe for a happy life. While money can facilitate an easier life, it shouldn't be the end goal.

Coming from a poor background, Anitta fell prey to the misconception that money can buy happiness. However, as she evolved, she understood that externally driven achievements are not the key to happiness. You need to turn inwards to understand your drivers and what you want to do. Living the life that others find successful may only leave you feeling more miserable.

The artist told Jay Shetty about the constant pressure to be, consume, and do more. In her eyes, this mindset creates a disconnection from our true needs and the natural world. Animals live a simple yet happy life—they don't need more things to collect, more houses, or more physical objects. Similarly, Anitta stresses the importance of letting go of external pressures to embrace a more authentic and fulfilling path.

Trans-Generational Emotions Impact Us

Anitta explained to Jay Shetty that trans-generational emotions can manifest inside of us. She opened up about her personal health struggles, which she considers to be emotional burdens manifesting physically. She decided to care for her body, after a retreat focused on mental health, her cancer markers and other health-related issues improved remarkably.

Moreover, Anitta shared how her mother's fears of financial instability during pregnancy unconsciously became hers, too. Moreover, she talked about synchronicities and how years later she ended up spending her 30th birthday in the same location where her father was fired during her mother's pregnancy, which led to her mother's distress. The artist worked on identifying those fears that were not hers and engaged in emotional cleansing rituals throughout multiple sessions with her shaman.

Anitta believes that mental, physical, and spiritual health are deeply interconnected. It is therefore important to identify and address inherited emotional and karmic burdens in order to have a more holistic understanding of our purpose.

A More Natural Life

After realizing that her previous lifestyle was unsustainable, Anitta decided to shift towards a more natural lifestyle. One of the changes she made included discontinuing birth control because of its negative hormonal impact on her health. She feels that placing responsibility for conception solely on the woman is unfair and calls for equally sharing it with the partner in a relationship.

In the past, Anitta pursued success without a clear understanding of her finances or true needs. However, over time, she came to rethink her approach to life. The artist shared with Jay Shetty that her transformation over the years involved not only spiritual and emotional changes, but also when it comes to the body.

The singer experimented with a vegan diet and reduced her meat consumption and committed to positively impact the planet while also improving her own energy levels. Moreover, she now prioritizes natural healing methods, such as taking plant-based baths, and actively engages with the universe through rituals.

Family Constellations

Anitta uses Family Constellations therapy to address deeply ingrained emotional issues and traumas. She explained to Jay Shetty that during these sessions, participants embody the energies of significant people in her life to reenact and resolve past conflicts. This process helps her recognize the importance of maintaining a balanced influence of both her parents in her life, and embrace aspects of each of them without taking sides.

Larissa (Anitta's real name) shares with Jay Shetty how her stage persona developed as a protective shell in response to past assaults and the societal pressures she faced. It allowed her to come off as fearless and brave. Yet maintaining this facade for too long contributed to a disconnection from her true self and affected her relationships. To heal this discrepancy within her, the artist now learned to embrace both parts of her identity: the vulnerable Larissa and the bold Anitta.

It's Okay to Have Different Opinions

Anitta discussed with Jay Shetty how successful women are perceived when choosing partners. She explained that societal double standards celebrate men for dating "ordinary" women but criticize successful women for doing the same. The artist believes this bias can hinder genuine relationships and affect people's self-esteem.

Moreover, Anitta experienced online backlash for honoring native Brazilian religions in one of her music videos. This controversial move lost her over 300k followers, yet she stands by her decision. To the artist, it is important to express her beliefs and the critical impact her faith has had on her life. She views her platform as a means to educate and inspire others, and she is using her influence to promote understanding and acceptance of diverse spiritual practices.

Although losing followers for staying true to her beliefs, Anitta had the opportunity to join Madonna for a concert with an audience of 1.6 million people. Madonna's longstanding advocacy for the LGBTQ community and women's rights is well-known. To Anitta, it was an honor to perform next to a music icon in an event promoting freedom and acceptance for marginalized communities.

The artist shared with Jay Shetty how important it is to her to allow people freedom of expression, not judge others, and permit them to live freely. She is a vocal advocate for environmental and Indigenous rights in Brazil. Through her platform and together with other renowned artists, Anitta strives to continue using her platform to support and inspire underrepresented communities.

Bold and Resilient

Anitta opened up to Jay Shetty about the significant challenges she faced rising from the favelas in Brazil. On her way to success, she fought hard with societal prejudice and struggled to gain recognition in the music industry. She couldn't find a manager, so she did everything herself for a few years until her breakthrough.

The artist's music style is Brazilian funk, a genre marginalized in both Brazilian and international markets. She had to tirelessly negotiate with brands and radio stations to allow her to promote her music. Even after becoming more known, she still had to prove that her music could be successful also abroad, competing in the Spanish-dominated music industry in Latin America.

Anitta focused on staying true to herself, regardless of public opinion. She continues to sing Brazilian funk and is thankful for the opportunities that come her way, but she doesn't force her fate as she may have done in the past. The artist told Jay Shetty that she prioritizes now personal happiness and artistic authenticity over fame. Her journey here was about breaking barriers, changing narratives, and growing, and she managed to achieve a level of inner peace that allowed her to remain true to herself both personally and professionally.

More From Jay Shetty

Listen to the entire On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast episode on “Anitta ON 6 Ways to Heal Your Inner Child & Let Go of Past Trauma” now in the iTunes store or on Spotify. For more inspirational stories and messages like this, check out Jay’s website at jayshetty.me.