Kesha found her sudden rise to stardom to be "terrifying"

The singer told People: "I went from being someone that sleeps in a sleeping bag at a punk house half of her life - everyone called it the Drunk Tank - and then a year and a half later I'm opening for Rihanna.

"It was terrifying, but it was so fun."

Kesha's family didn't have much money during her younger years, but she always found inspiration and hope in music.

The pop star - whose new album is called Period - said: "When I was little, we were on food stamps. I remember thinking, 'What makes people really happy when they're having a hard time? Happy songs do that.'"

Kesha has actually relied on music to help her through some of the dark times in her own life.

And the singer is conscious that she now has the chance to uplift people who are going through similarly difficult times.

She explained: "The interesting thing about being an artist is you can be the person going through hell and also the person that walks into the studio, like, 'I'm going to make sure you get through this. We're going to write a banger because it brings us joy.' It's almost like I'm picking myself up out of the sad moments I'm in.

"I feel like it's my responsibility as an artist and a songwriter to just be honest about my human experience."

Kesha has already been through lots of ups and downs in her career. However, the pop star no longer pays attention to her critics.

The Blah Blah Blah hitmaker said: "I honestly don't care what people think about me.

"I have nothing left to prove. I've already heard any horrible thing someone could hear about themselves: 'You're too fat, you're too old, you suck.' I'm immune to it, sadly. But maybe it's my superpower, because that is freedom. I'm just going to be myself. So party on, haters."