Jesy Nelson's solo career - BOYZ ft. Nicki Minaj out now + not very good + problematic + unimpressed label + DROPPED + Bad Thing + now white

I think this whole thing will


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the release date for this has been pushed back. maybe they're waiting for her fake tan to fade?
 
Not sure WHY as I can barely HUM two Little Mix songs but I'm kinda fascinated by BAND DRAMAS so I've been following this from a distance. There's an interview with Jesy in today's Guardian where she talks less about any beef with the other bandmates but more about her frequent panic attacks and the stuff she went through.

It's never acknowledged explicitly but I think her decision was more to do with having to do things imposed by management "as a band" (not just singing certain songs but also "and you're going to be wearing a bikini in this video" type of stuff) than any issues with the other members. It does sound like quite a PROFESSIONAL relationship among them, rather than FRIENDSHIP NEVER ENDS, but then they were never childhood friends but rather put together by the X Factor weren't they.
 
I wish her WELL but it sounds like her issues are still there even if part of the blockers have disappeared. Not sure launching a solo career is going to help anything but GOOD LUCK.

Ps. She addresses blackfishing in passing and to quote the journo she is "BEWILDERED" by the accusation :eyes:
 
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I loved what we did in Little Mix, but it wasn’t necessarily music I would listen to myself. The music I love is old school R&B and hip-hop.

Well that bodes well... :eyes:
 
Not sure WHY as I can barely HUM two Little Mix songs but I'm kinda fascinated by BAND DRAMAS so I've been following this from a distance. There's an interview with Jesy in today's Guardian where she talks less about any beef with the other bandmates but more about her frequent panic attacks and the stuff she went through.

Yeah, I think this is also what discussions here in several other topics boiled down to. It's not so much fraught relationships because they disliked each other, it's her demons and how she felt in the middle of this more than anything else and maybe some helplessness and, to a certain extent, exhaustion from the other three because there was only so much they could really do to improve the situation for Jesy.
 
I do feel for her a lot and I totally believe her that it was management/record label people that she had issues with rather than the other girls.

Also, there's always at least one who doesn't gel as well when a group is randomly put together. Sarah Harding was always open that her relationship with the rest of Girls Aloud was largely on a work colleague level. It's a bit toxic that we expect women in pop groups to be BEST FRIENDS FOR LIFE or constantly in-fighting witches. I genuinely don't ever recall seeing that kind of discourse about One Direction, for example.
 
It's a bit toxic that we expect women in pop groups to be BEST FRIENDS FOR LIFE or constantly in-fighting witches. I genuinely don't ever recall seeing that kind of discourse about One Direction, for example.

This could probably be applied to the stereotypes regarding men and women in most aspects of life, especially at workplaces but also e.g. in sports (see tennis). It's the whole "boys' club" dynamic/portrayal on the men's side and "claws out" between women which is incredibly reductive and one-dimensional, often to the detriment of the women.
 
I have no insight to how it is/was for any of them, but I get the vibe that they did all get along relatively well and have a lot of affection for each other, to the extent that they will go over and above their professional requirements (such as them all appearing in her very good documentary). But I imagine it did come to a point where Jesy’s demons may have compromised them possibly as a group and they were more than happy, possibly even excited to do the group tasks that she just didn’t want to and therefore it made sense for her to head in her own direction and them to continue doing there thing?
 
Oh no, I was hoping for some cheryl cole solo eque BANGERS
OUT OF THE QUESTION!

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old skool hip hop - she's definitely going down the TULISA route then!
 
This could probably be applied to the stereotypes regarding men and women in most aspects of life, especially at workplaces but also e.g. in sports (see tennis). It's the whole "boys' club" dynamic/portrayal on the men's side and "claws out" between women which is incredibly reductive and one-dimensional, often to the detriment of the women.

Spot on.

That the most successful all-female pop group of the modern age established themselves with the "friendship never ends" angle doesn't help in the present instance either.
 
What's wrong with going down the old-school R&B route? I'm here for Jesy's Get On The Bus (to Romford)
 
If her first single follows the lyrical trope of "I was unhappy now I'm on my own and therefore happy", she's done for. Regardless of genre.
 
“All but one treated me so lovely, like a princess. But a year down the line I get a bit bored and they become my friend. I’m always more attracted to someone who keeps me on my toes, which sounds mental, but that’s what excites me.”

Someone still needs to work through their self-esteem issues.
 
Its obvious she's going to try to re-create the R&B masterpiece that is hot- out now.
 
Some interesting bits from the Guardian interview


For a while things did improve. She deleted her Twitter account – for Nelson, the most aggressive of social media platforms. Meanwhile, Little Mix continued to enjoy great success in the singles and albums charts. But in 2018 a spat between their management company, Modest!, and their record label, Simon Cowell’s Syco, resulted in a transfer to RCA, another label under the Sony Music umbrella. Nelson says Little Mix were the collateral damage. “The incident that led to us leaving the label was nothing to do with us as a band. It was to do with other people that worked for us. We didn’t want to leave.” For once her language becomes a little cautious. She laughs and says it’s at times like this that she misses having the girls around her.

Nelson thinks the move to RCA was disastrous. “It was just a bit shit because we loved our whole team. When Little Mix started out, and for a long time, we were very authentic. We’d go in and write together, but as we got older and changed label, we lost heart in it a bit. We were given songs and I hated them. I was like, ‘I don’t want to be on them – I don’t like the song.’ I don’t ever want to be an artist that puts out something I don’t believe in.”

Nelson has been calm, but starts to cry. “I did the music video and had a panic attack, and it was pretty mental that day. God, I haven’t really spoken about it and I’m getting upset. Sorry.” She brushes her tears away. “After the video I just got back in a really dark place and ended up back in hospital. That was when my mum said, ‘No more.’” The tears are still falling, and she grabs another tissue. “I had already decided. Then the girls spoke to Mum and said, ‘We think Jesy should come out of this now. She has to look after herself.’” So in the end it was their decision as much as hers? “Yeah,” she says. “Yeah. I know there are people who think I’ve let the other girls down, and that I’m so selfish, but I do think there comes a time in life when you do have to be selfish and look after yourself, and it was really affecting me mentally.”

What added to the hurt, she says, is that there were people who made it clear they were glad to see the back of her. “Certain people on my team didn’t care.” She comes to a stop. “I’m not talking about the girls. There were people on my team who knew how I was feeling and didn’t give a shit. They just weren’t bothered.” She means management? “Yep. There was an energy when I walked into a room. I felt there were certain people on my team who just didn’t want me to be there.”

I ask whether her unhappiness has made it tough for the girls over the years. “Of course. Course. We’ve all had our own problems. But it’s never nice to be around someone who’s down and doesn’t want to be there. As much as I needed to come out of it for myself, I didn’t want to keep putting three other people through that as well.”

Now Little Mix is a trio, two of whom are pregnant. Does she think the group will stay together? “I reckon they’ll look after their babies, go off and do their own things for a while, then make a comeback together. I think they’re just as sick as a three. They’re still doing it for girl power. I still love them to pieces. They were like my sisters.” Has she been in touch with them? “No, not as much. Not now. I think we all need time. It’s a big thing that’s happened.”

In May she was accused on social media of “blackfishing” – a term used to describe white people who have altered their appearance to the extent that they look racially ambiguous. “I would never want to offend anyone, and that was really upsetting. I wasn’t aware that’s how people felt.” She sounds bewildered by the allegation.
 
That’s a good read and she comes across well. If authenticity is a key part of her happiness, then she did the right thing to leave the group.
 
Yep and it's pretty key that the other girls had a part in the decision as well

As much as I'm a DRAMA HOUND, the way she speaks about them is quite nice. Understandable that they're not in touch as it must all be so raw but not unsalvageable at all I would guess
 
she handles that discussion about the group really well. glad there doesn't seem to be too much bad blood.
 
If anything their discography has improved, so I find her complaint a bit odd. Is it true she hates Sweet Melody?
 
If anything their discography has improved, so I find her complaint a bit odd.

but that's called... personal taste.

I don't think Confetti is better or worse than LM5 but they've not made a really good album since Salute, so.
 
but that's called... personal taste.

I don't think Confetti is better or worse than LM5 but they've not made a really good album since Salute, so.
I don't really know as someone who has never listened to their albums but I had the impression they hated the earlier Disney Channel stuff like Black Magic and wanted to be a bit more urban.
 
Jesy does famously despise Black Magic :D in general I don't think they had an issue with their music from that time though.
 
LM5 was their low point for me and Confetti was an overall improvement. But if she hates the music it’s a bit miserable for everyone, so I don’t blame her for wanting out. I think she’s put it as classy as she can without being snide or dismissive of the LM fans/rest of the group who still enjoy the music.
 
From Popbitch:

Curious to know what's happened to delay the release of Jesy Nelson's debut single? The one that's been pushed back due to "unforeseen circumstances" even after Jesy had started the legwork of plugging it on social media and in interviews?

One thing we hear that might be holding things up is that the track's supposed guest star, Nicki Minaj, hasn't got round to recording her part yet.

(Presumably someone didn't let Nicki know that Jesy's team had been keen to get the track out to 'coincide' with the Little Mix 10th anniversary...)

I don't think that's right though because Nicki could be heard in the clip of the video filming
 

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