Selena Gomez is "Getting Stronger"

With fellow young stars making headlines for all the wrong reasons - salvia smoking, stints in rehab, racy Twit pics - Selena Gomez has never been better.

Granted, the singer might be receiving death threats these days for holding hands with Justin Bieber, but she's also covering Sugar magazine and coming across as more grounded as ever.

“I used to be much more of a people pleaser than I am today," Selena says. "But about two years ago, I started getting better at doing things and making choices that make me happy. I definitely feel like I’m getting stronger.”

Despite recent rumors of dating Bieber, Gomez insists she's single. And she's fine with that.

“Once the blur and haze of being in love goes away you get to focus on yourself. Whenever I have a crush on someone, [friend] Jennifer Stone always says, ‘Enjoy the illusion while it lasts, I’ll see you when you get back to the real world!’ And it’s SO true!”