(Cover) - EN Showbiz - Vanessa Paradis says rising to stardom as a teenager was the worst time of her life.

The 37-year-old French model, singer and actress was cast into the celebrity limelight aged just 14 when she released the hit single Joe le Taxi, which went on to gain international success.

However she said the experience scarred her for life because when she started being recognised her school friends began to hate her.

It was the worst time of my life, in a way, she recalled to the British publication of OK! magazine. I recorded Joe le Taxi [In 1987] and then when I went back to school after summer vacation suddenly I was a celebrity and my face was on the cover of every magazine. Many people loved the song and were great fans, but there were many people who hated it and hated me.

Vanessa says the reaction towards her at such a tender and impressionable age was like torture. Some of her female peers showed their feelings towards her by spitting on her in public and bullying her, and Vanessa still cannot begin to comprehend what happened or why at that time in her life.

It was a torture for me, Vanessa confided. Some girls spat at me on the street. I never understood that kind of hatred.

Vanessa is now in a relationship with Johnny Depp, with who she has Lily-Rose, 11, and eight-year-old Jack. (C) Cover Media