Before the 2019 Beautiful Issue Reveal, Looking Back on Pink's Beautiful Year

In April 2018, PEOPLE editor-in-chief Jess Cagle announced the magazine was changing its annual celebration of inner and outer beauty from Most Beautiful to the Beautiful Issue — and Pink was the perfect cover star.

“She’s a performer, mother and role model whose honesty, humor, confidence and sheer star power make her one of the most beloved and fascinating entertainers on the planet,” he wrote of the rocker, who joked “I feel more beautiful” after seeing her big cover. 

In her cover interview, Pink opened up about her tough parenting style, calling husband Carey Hart “good cop” and admitting she is always open about her feelings with her kids, daughter Willow and son Jameson.

“I’m a tough mama,” she added. “I expect a lot. I have a high bar for myself and for others, and it’s not easy to be loved by me. But [Willow] gets it and she’s smart, and thoughtful because of it.”

The singer took her husband and children along for the ride as she brought her Beautiful Trauma tour from the United States to Australia — and back again.

Though she battled illness and injury, she kept on going, and admitted it wasn’t easy.

“Going on tour with children is really tricky. It’s exhausting. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” Pink said on an episode of Reese Witherspoon‘s AT&T series Shine on with Reese. “But I’m very, very fortunate that I get to bring my kids with me and that I kind of get to integrate them into my [work] life.”

During her Brisbane, Australia, show, the star stopped singing in the middle of her setlist after 14-year-old Leah Murphy’s sign caught her attention. “My name is Leah – I’m 14 years old. I lost my beautiful Mom last month. I would LOVE a hug…Please!” the young fan’s sign read.

After reading the sign aloud to the rest of the audience, Pink immediately came down from the stage to find Leah. Along with a sweet hug, the mother of two took selfies with Leah and autographed her arm.

In a lighter moment, following her March 2019 concert in Nashville, she popped into a local bar and hit the stage to perform a Janis Joplin tribute, to the delight of her adoring fans.

In a pretty cool mom move, Pink enlisted Willow to sing a reprise of  “A Million Dreams” for an all-star tribute album to The Greatest Showman. The proud mama documented their recording session on Instagram.  

And they’ve still got it: in his Thanksgiving post, Hart referred to his rocker wife as a “#milf.”

And rightly so. Pink brought her husband and kids to the big ceremony, and gave one of her signature inspiring speeches.

“It’s been two decades and it’s been meaningful and it’s been awesome,” she said of her career. “Today for me is a celebration of something that my dad taught me. And that is ‘to thine own self be true’ … There is a power in believing in yourself — you may not be the best that ever did it, you may not be the prettiest or the tallest of the funniest or the most talented … if you’re stubborn and you don’t give up and you work really hard — no one else can ever be you. Today is an absolute honor. Today proves that.”

Okay so she actually didn’t, but because her kids are awesome, they made her one after she came home from the February 2019 ceremony empty-handed. 

“Thanks Kids:) my favorite kind of award,” Pink captioned two sweet snaps of her children holding up the “trophy” on Instagram.

In addition to announcing she’ll no longer be posting pics of her kids on social media because of trolls (our loss), Pink continued to clap back to haters in the most epic of ways.

Example? After a Twitter follower told her she looked so old she should be “named Purple instead,” the singer replied, “Well, there are a few people left in the world that choose to age naturally. And I’ve earned every f—ing minute of my 38 years. How you lookin’ though? ‘Cause I never heard of ya ’til you put my name in your mouth. I shall call you little purple troll. ‘ “

As if life wasn’t exciting enough, while in Nashville, Pink and her family adopted a dog from the Nashville Humane Association, naming him Nash for his hometown.

Proof she thought the move was a little crazy? These hashtags: “#notenoughstressalready #chaos #whatthehelljusthappened”

And that was just one year! As the singer approaches 40 this September — and keeps on being awesome — we can’t wait to see what she does next.