Sara Bareilles Says She Lets Herself Be ‘Flawed’ as She Turns 44: ‘There Is Freedom in That’ (Exclusive)

Sara Bareilles embraces her imperfections as she celebrates another birthday.

The “Brave” singer, who turned 44 on Thursday, tells PEOPLE what she’s learned about herself over the past year.

“I’m impatient more than I care to admit. I just have more flaws than I really think I should,” says the Grammy winner. “There’s something really liberating about just allowing yourself to be flawed, that if I let go of the perfectionism, there’s actually more liberation and freedom than shame.”

“And that was a revelation for me, that there actually is—it’s easier and more fun not to be the person who’s right all the time and doesn’t have all the answers,” she continues, “It’s like, ‘I don’t know, let’s try this. Maybe I’m wrong.’ It makes things a little more fun and playful.”

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Bareilles, who recently moved to Brooklyn, New York, with her fiance, actor Joe Tippett, 41, and her 2-year-old dog Louie, adds that she’s been contemplative lately.

“I’m thinking about a lot of deep questions about identity and what it means to be in a real partnership. And I have this little dog next to me. It’s like parenting. It’s like all the things are really in the foreground and I think those are really interesting things,” she says.

Joe Tippett and Sara Bareilles.

Gotham/GC Images/Getty

The “Love Song” hitmaker does, “a lot of thinking, a lot of meditating, a lot of therapy, a lot of long walks,” she says. “I’m growing up, I’m finally growing up.”

Recently, aging has been on her mind. Last month, Bareilles took to Instagram, saying she had been “crying for the last 36 hours” because of old insecurities about her body’s resurgence.

“I’ve been a little bit public about aging. And I’m at a lot of crossroads in my life about where I am — I’m turning 44 in a few weeks. And I want to be someone who’s willing to be exactly who I am,” she told her followers.

“I want my body to do what my body does as I get older. I want my face to do what my face does. I want to stop fixating on some unattainable type of bull — a standard of beauty. I want it to stop taking up so much space in my brain. And I want to talk about it,” she added.

Bareilles now tells PEOPLE that the reaction to her video has been positive.

“Well, as usual, every time I share something that feels really true and honest and vulnerable, it’s such a great source of connection and a reminder that you’re never alone, no matter what you’re feeling outside of yourself. You’re usually in the majority,” she says.

As Bareilles comes to terms with it, she’s also counting her blessings: Thursday, her birthday, also marked the first day Waitress: The Musicalfive-day theatrical run. Bareilles wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway hit, and in the fall of 2021 she played the lead role for several weeks.

One of those performances was recorded for a special edition.

Charity Angel Dawson, Sara Bareilles and Caitlin Houlahan in ‘Waitress: The Musical’.

Courtesy of Bleecker Street

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“I can’t believe we’re in a situation where we can actually see this movie in theaters. It seems like a complete gift,” she says.

Bareilles took to Instagram on Thursday to express her excitement and document how she surprised fans at a screening in New York.

“Okay, I’m backstage at the AMC Theater in Lincoln Square and I’m about to surprise the audience at the first shows Waitress: The Musical movie tonight – the premiere, I can’t wait!” she said in a selfie video.

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A few moments later, she came out in front of the packed hall to cheers and applause and introduced the film.

Based on the 2007 drama of the same name. Waitress tells the story of small-town diner Jenna (Bareilles) who is stuck in a loveless marriage to overbearing Earl (Tippett). After finding out she is pregnant, she falls in love with her charming gynecologist (Drew Gehling).

Waitress: The Musical it’s in theaters until December 12.

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Source: HIS Education