Selena Gomez Describes Life in Spotlight

This is a rush transcript from "Hannity," July 21, 2010. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: That was a clip from the new movie "Ramona & Beezus," starring our next guest, teen superstar Selena Gomez.

Now, just one day shy of her 18th birthday, her resume is quite impressive. Now Gomez has a hit TV show call "The Wizards of Waverly Place." You can catch that on the Disney Channel. She has a brand-new clothing line, Dream Out Loud, sold exclusively at K-Mart. And she's also the spokesperson for UNICEF's trick-or-treat campaign. Clearly, far from your average teen.

Selena Gomez, it is such a great — how are you? Great to see you. How are you?

SELENA GOMEZ, ACTRESS: I'm great. Thank you.

HANNITY: All right. Now some would say, all right, how do I know you? I have an 8-year-old daughter. So I've interviewed presidents and vice presidents and secretary of states. It's only two people that she's ever wanted to meet: Billy Ray Cyrus and you. And she came here tonight to meet you.

GOMEZ: Well, thank you very much. That means a lot to me.

HANNITY: You're doing a lot. You're going to be 18 tomorrow. Are you excited about your birthday?

GOMEZ: Yes, but I feel like I'm getting old. It's weird.

HANNITY: Tell me about it. I'm 48 so I know exactly how you feel. I think I'm going to get my own clothing line.

GOMEZ: Oh, really?

HANNITY: Yes. For fat old guys with white hair.

GOMEZ: I'll take care of the kids and you take care of that department.

HANNITY: Actually, you're 18 years old. I watched you and I really — first of all, you are — you're amazing on camera. You're a terrific singer. You've got a beautiful voice. And my daughter is such a big fan. I've watched you a lot. This has all happened for you very fast.

I mean, I know you worked for — with "Barney and Friends" when were you younger. But this — this growth that you've had, what do you make of it?

GOMEZ: Well, I mean, I love the quote when people say overnight success usually takes about 15 years. And I feel like that's what I've done. I really have worked hard on my show. I mean, the first season of my show we used to have to pay kids to come watch our show. We had to pay audience members to come watch our show.

So, I mean, just to see how far we've come, we've all worked really hard. It wasn't just we put this thing on, and it was great.

HANNITY: I mean, that is — a lot of people think, all right, they're watching you on TV. They think you're having the time of your life, but there's a lot of work that goes in behind it.

GOMEZ: Of course. I think that you have to do all of that work in order to do what pays off. And that's my show, and that's the concerts and that's everything. You have to kind of do it.

HANNITY: Is there one thing, because you do the TV show. You do your concerts. You're now acting in movies. Is there any one thing that you like better than others?

GOMEZ: At the moment, no. I think eventually once I get older, I'm going to transition more into films, and I'll probably just stick to that. But at the moment I have a passion, a genuine love and passion for every single thing that I'm a part of.

HANNITY: You know, that's one thing that I have noticed about you. You really seem to love what you're doing. You seem to really be enjoying the ride.

GOMEZ: Thank you.

HANNITY: That — is fame hard — I mean, this may sound like a silly question. Is fame hard? Is there a hard aspect to it? I read in one interview that you gave, for example, somebody — one of the gossip columns linked you to one of the Jonas brothers. And you were very strong in saying you don't like that side of what you do.

GOMEZ: Yes, it's very hard. And I think that with the Internet and having that direct accessibility to all these people, it gets extremely hard, and it's really terrible, because it's not — the business didn't used to be that.

I mean, you talk about Julia Roberts, Leonardo DiCaprio, all those people, they always say, like, "I'm really glad I didn't have to deal with all that back then." Because it is — it is harder now. They're constantly nitpicking everything you're doing. And it's no longer about what you love. It's about what you're wearing and who you're with and who you're not with. And...

HANNITY: Are you having a big problem with, like, the paparazzi people, because you're in so many magazines now? I have the same problem. I mean, I'm in all these...

GOMEZ: I can imagine. You know.

HANNITY: No, I actually — thank God I don't know.

GOMEZ: I mean, I...

HANNITY: But I watch you. And you seem to handle it with grace and a smile. I mean, you have such a great sense of humor. I mean, is it hard at times?

GOMEZ: Thank you.

HANNITY: I mean, you can't get a cup of coffee and the people commenting about what you're wearing.

GOMEZ: Well, that's not true always, because it depends. It's always when I'm doing something. When I'm in the moment and I'm in New York and I'm promoting and I'm here a lot, then it will be a little bit more insane. But when I'm back home, people don't really care about me, which is nice, because it's like it's fine. I get to live a normal life. So I have a good balance of both.

HANNITY: Yes. So tell me this — because I mean, you're young, and you're also, you know, with your busy schedule, you're giving back and you're working with UNICEF. Tell me what that's all about.

GOMEZ: Well, it's always been a part of my family. Giving back has always been a big lesson that my mom has taught me, even when we weren't as fortunate as we are now.

So basically, now that I've been blessed with having this voice and this platform that I'm able to use my voice for, I just want to educate kids my age or younger to help everybody, like especially other kids around the world. Because we're the next generation coming up.

HANNITY: It was interesting, because your mom had you when she was young, 16 years old, I mean, which is a pretty young age. It seems like you have a very close relationship with your dad and your mom. I mean...

GOMEZ: I do.

HANNITY: Do you — do you think — and this is a question that a lot of athletes, I'll ask. Do you have a role — do you view yourself as a role model, considering kids really look up to you? I mean, they admire you so much. They want to dress like you and look like you and get haircuts like you. I don't have that problem, but you know.

GOMEZ: I mean, I do understand that, being under the spotlight and having such a wonderful family, your daughter and her friends and everyone, it is a blessing.

I do have to be a little bit cautious. But it's not really hard for me. I love what I do, and I always make sure to tell my fans I'm not perfect, so don't think I am. I make mistakes. I'm human, and we all are. But I try to be the best I can be, and that's all I really can do.

HANNITY: Well, I've got to tell you, first of all, happy birthday.

GOMEZ: Thank you.

HANNITY: Your birthday is tomorrow. And you have remarkable poise for an 18-year-old girl.

GOMEZ: Thank you.

HANNITY: And your work is terrific. Continued success.

GOMEZ: Thank you.

HANNITY: We wish you all the best, and we're so glad you could stop by.

GOMEZ: Thank you. I appreciate it.

HANNITY: Really appreciate it.

— Watch "Hannity" weeknights at 9 p.m. ET!

Content and Programming Copyright 2010 Fox News Network, Inc. Copyright 2010 Roll Call, Inc. All materials herein are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of Roll Call. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content.