'High School Musical' Star Vanessa Hudgens: 'Everything That Has Happened Has Been Insane'

At just 18, Vanessa Hudgens is a huge teen icon, and she owes it to the phenomenon that is "High School Musical."

Vanessa tells "Extra" that life as a teen star is a far cry from anything she could have dreamed.

"I am so lucky in the fact that I got that role," Vanessa said. "It could have been anyone. It totally wasn't what I was expecting."

She added,"Just everything that's happened has been insane. My fans are amazing."

The only down side, she said, is being mobbed by those adoring fans!

Still, she wouldn't trade it for anything.

In just a short time, she has toured the world, released an album and made a music video featuring rumored boyfriend and "HSM" co-star Zac Efron.

"I didn't want to do it with a complete stranger and actually every single person in that music video is actually one of my friends," she explained. "The guys were actually Zac's friends."

As Zac and Vanessa grow more famous, the scrutiny over their relationship grows.

She's tried to stay mum about their budding love, but with pictures of the two vacationing together or holding hands splashed in magazines, it's not easy.

In fact, they've never publicly admitted that they're dating but teen magazines have already dubbed them "Zanessa" to the tune of "Brangelina" and "Bennifer!"

"You just kind of do have to laugh it off, there's nothing you can do about it," she said.