Selena covers next week's Billboard magazine, and in the article, industry heavyweights weigh in on the teen queen's potential.
"[She carries herself in a manner of] actresses who have built careers in films, like Dakota Fanning," Gabler tells Billboard. "She has a special quality in that she just doesn't – and this is no disrespect to anyone else – work out of just a sitcom style of comedy. There's a bit of self-deprecation, and she shows vulnerability. She's also able to do serious themes."
Many have questioned if Selena can make the successful transition between Disney child star and respected actress/musician, but Selena makes it clear that despite the highly publicized pitfalls faced by past Disney superstars like Hilary Duff and Miley Cyrus, she is certainly up for the challenge.
"It's obviously an important phase in my career, and personally," Gomez reflects. "The good news is I have been juggling singing and acting for two-and-a-half to three years. But I have to start over in some areas. It's interesting to start taking risks, to grow up through my music."
One former Disney star's career she would love to emulate? None other than bad boy Shia LaBeouf, who starred in the Disney Channel series "Even Stevens" from 1999-2003.
"He did it really well," says Gomez. "He's talented and doing wonderful things."
She also briefly talks about the intense media scrutiny surrounding her and boyfriend Justin Bieber, making her the target of millions of his overzealous fans all over the Internet.
"I have a love-hate relationship with the Internet," Gomez comments. "I don't like it in general – it's vicious. But it's also incredible that I can connect with fans, because I love to hear their feedback and let them know about my life."
And nowadays, Selena certainly has a lot to tell her fans about. She stars in the upcoming 'Monte Carlo' alongside Katie Cassidy and Leighton Meester, which comes out July 1st, and her third studio album, When the Sun Goes Down, is set to hit shelves June 28.
"It's techno dance," Selena says about her latest album, which Billboard calls the "most important album of her young career."
"Pop is something I'm most comfortable with and these are producers who know me and know the direction we want to go in. The songs are tailored to me and my style," she explains.
"I'm very lucky."
