TryShadowing
Shadow YouTube. Speak English.
Selena Gomez shares her personal story of overcoming self-doubt and pressure, emphasizing self-trust and the importance of being true to yourself.
Present perfect with "have" to express life experience — Used to reflect on achievements and lessons learned. "I have been acting my entire life and I have known since I was first on Barney" and "I've learned from my mistakes."
Imperative mood for direct commands and urgent advice — Used frequently to motivate the audience. "Please stay true to yourself," "Be proud of yourselves," and "Please just be kind to each other."
Reported speech and past tense to tell personal narratives — Gomez shifts between direct quotes and paraphrasing. "A casting director tell me that I wasn't strong enough to carry my own show" and "she said, 'The most important thing is to always trust in myself.'"
This video features Selena Gomez delivering a motivational speech to a live audience, where she opens up about her journey from childhood rejection to success. The pivotal moment comes when she recalls being told at age 11 by a casting director that she wasn't "strong enough to carry my own show"—a wound that shaped her resilience. She credits her mother, who raised her alone while working four jobs, with teaching her to trust herself and ignore critics. Gomez emphasizes that the real change-makers are the audience themselves, not celebrities, and repeatedly urges listeners to stay true to who they are and support each other.
This is excellent shadowing material at B1 level because Gomez speaks at a natural, moderate pace with clear enunciation and warm, conversational tone. She repeats key ideas ("trust yourself," "be kind to each other") in different phrasings, which helps shadowers catch and internalize language patterns. The emotional delivery provides natural intonation and stress that brings English to life. Her speech mixes personal anecdotes with direct advice, so learners encounter both narrative past tense and imperative structures naturally.
This content suits B1 learners who want to improve their listening comprehension, speaking fluency, and ability to express emotions and personal stories in English. By shadowing Gomez's heartfelt delivery, learners will gain confidence with conversational expressions, develop a feel for emphasis and pacing, and absorb phrases useful for speaking about personal challenges and values.
knock the wind out of you — to shock or upset someone deeply; to have a strong negative impact. "It does more than knock the wind out of you. It crushes you when people try to tell you that you're not good enough."
turn the other cheek — to ignore insults or criticism and not retaliate; to respond to negativity with patience. "She taught me to turn the other cheek and let the critics be critics."
give in to pressure — to surrender to demands or expectations and stop resisting. "Until recently, I had given into that pressure. I lost sight of who I was."
be yourself — to act naturally and authentically rather than pretending or conforming. "I don't know how to be anything but myself."
inspire each other — to motivate and encourage one another. "Please, please just be kind to each other and love and inspire people."
