Little Mix: Leigh-Anne Pinnock says band went to therapy after Jesy Nelson exit

Published

6 months ago

October 25, 2023

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Little Mix star Leigh-Anne Pinnock has revealed her bandmates went to therapy after Jesy Nelson’s “traumatic” exit.

In an extract of her memoir, published in The Sun newspaper, she said: “The whole thing was abrupt and sad and then it was messy.”

Nelson left the Brit Award-winning group in 2020, saying that life in the band had negatively affected her mental health.

In the book, titled Believe, 32-year-old Pinnock wrote: “We were a family, the four of us were like sisters, and we had been that way since we were teenagers, so it’s not an over-exaggeration to say that losing a member was a traumatic experience.

“When you have felt so much love and support with another person over such a long time and then that suddenly disappears you never fully get to understand why it hurts.”

Along with Perrie Edwards and Jade Thirlwall, both 30, the trio turned to therapy after Nelson’s departure, adding: “We have moved forwards into something even brighter and stronger.

“Therapy helped me, helped all of us, process what had happened and manage the emotions that came with it. All of that messiness is now so far behind me that it’s not even worth commenting on.”

Pinnock also said the experience of Nelson leaving “pulled the three of us even closer together”.

“We clung to each other in those last months. Jade and Perrie were the only people who really knew what it felt like, who knew what we had been through. They just got it.”

Little Mix was formed on The X Factor in 2011 and has earned five UK number-one singles.

The group continued as a trio after Nelson’s departure in December 2020 before going on hiatus in 2022.

Nelson announced her exit in an Instagram post, saying it was time to “embark on a new chapter” – with her bandmates wishing her well.

But tensions rose in the following months with Pinnock allegedly criticising Nelson over “blackfishing”.

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In her memoir, Pinnock referenced getting caught in a “horrific online row” after giving birth to twins, which she described as one of the most difficult moments in her career.

“In the moment it felt truly awful. As much as I tried to avoid Instagram and Twitter I kept seeing the comments and the debates that were taking place on every platform.

“I was a new mum dealing with the mental and physical aftermath of pregnancy and birth, flooded with hormones and emotion, and severely sleep deprived, and on top of all that I also had to deal with this.”

Pinnock’s memoir is set for release on Thursday.

Entertainment

Dane Baptiste apologises to Jewish community for ‘disturbing’ language – and is dropped by agency

Published

13 hours ago

May 2, 2024

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Dane Baptiste apologises to Jewish community for 'disturbing' language - and is dropped by agency

Comedian Dane Baptiste has apologised to the “Jewish community, my colleagues and my fans” following criticism over a now-deleted social media post.

The stand-up star, who has appeared on TV shows including 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown, Live At The Apollo, and Mock The Week, has been dropped by his talent agency Insanity.

The company said the contents of a deleted post were “completely at odds with our values and what we stand for”.

The Metropolitan Police has also been made aware of the post.

Baptiste said he had made “a massive error of judgment” after receiving “a number of threatening and abusive messages from accounts accusing me of antisemitism for having pro-Palestinian views”.

The comedian said his partner had made him aware that “some of these same people” were monitoring her Instagram account.

In an apology posted on social media, Baptiste said: “In a massive error of judgment, I posted an excessive and impulsive response, hoping to dissuade anybody monitoring my family.

“I made a point to say Zionist and not Jewish, but I appreciate how disturbing, threatening and incendiary that language is, I would categorically state I have no ill intention towards the Jewish community and never have.

“I have a loving family of which I am massively protective of; I reacted poorly and emotionally to a perceived threat with no considered thought to the consequences, and I apologise profusely for my actions to the Jewish community, my colleagues and my fans.”

Baptiste was the first black comedian to be nominated for the award for best newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards in 2014, and also fronted the BBC Three sketch programme Bamous.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Insanity said: “Insanity became aware of a social media post published by Dane on Instagram yesterday.

“The contents of his post are completely at odds with our values and what we stand for. We promptly made this clear to him, and are no longer working with him.

“As an organisation we do not tolerate hate speech of any kind and are committed to the values of respect and tolerance for all.”

Sky News has contacted Baptiste for comment.

Entertainment

Universal artists to return to TikTok as dispute comes to an end

Published

19 hours ago

May 2, 2024

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Universal artists to return to TikTok as dispute comes to an end

Universal Music and TikTok have ended a dispute over royalties after the label pulled millions of songs from the social media platform.

The new licensing agreement means songs by some of the biggest artists in the world, including Drake, Adele and Billie Eilish will return to the site for use within the next two weeks.

TikTok, a short video app, is a valuable marketing and promotional tool for music stars. But in January, Universal claimed it paid artists and songwriters “a fraction” of the rate offered by similar social media platforms, and announced it was pulling its catalogue.

Universal is the biggest music label in the world and also looks after Taylor Swift – who allowed a selection of her songs to return to TikTok as she promoted her latest album, The Tortured Poets Department, in April. Swift owns the copyrights to her recordings through her 2018 deal with Universal and can control where her songs are available, according to the Financial Times.

The companies now say they have come to “a new multi-dimensional” licensing agreement that will deliver “significant industry-leading benefits” for Universal’s artists and labels.

In a joint statement, TikTok said it would continue to invest resources into “building artist-centric tools” and work on strengthening online safety protections for artists and their fans.

The AI issue

The agreement means all videos that had been muted will be unmuted. It comes just over three months since Universal posted an open letter criticising TikTok, calling for higher payments for artists and songwriters, protection from the “harmful effects” of AI, and online safety.

In their joint statement, the companies now say they will work together to ensure AI development across the industry “will protect human artistry and the economics that flow to those artists and songwriters”.

They will also work to remove unauthorised AI-generated music from the platform, as well as on tools to improve artist and songwriter attribution, the statement says.

Universal chairman and chief executive Sir Lucian Grainge said the “new chapter” focuses “on the value of music, the primacy of human artistry and the welfare of the creative community”, while TikTok chief executive Shou Chew added: “Music is an integral part of the TikTok ecosystem, and we are pleased to have found a path forward with Universal Music Group.”

Concerns about AI have grown in the creative community. In April last year, a song featuring the cloned voices of Drake and The Weeknd was removed from streaming sites after going viral.

On Tuesday, British singer-songwriter and producer FKA Twigs told a US Senate hearing how she had created her own digital clone – but condemned unauthorised use of her voice and image.

On Wednesday, a poll by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Music found that 83% of UK adults agree that a music artist’s creative “personality” should be protected in law against AI copies and 77% believe it amounts to theft when generated music fails to acknowledge the creator of the original.

In April, more than 200 artists signed an open letter objecting to the “predatory” use of AI to “steal professional artists’ voices and likenesses”.

Entertainment

Wales to get own version of The Voice hosted by Radio 1 DJ

Published

20 hours ago

May 2, 2024

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Wales to get own version of The Voice hosted by Radio 1 DJ

Wales is to get its own version of talent show The Voice, it has been announced.

The series named Y Llais (Welsh for The Voice) will be presented by Radio 1 DJ Sian Eleri.

The Boom Cymru-produced show will make its debut on S4C next year.

Opera star Sir Bryn Terfel has been announced as one of the four coaches.

The Grammy award-winning artist performed at the King‘s coronation last May.

The Welsh-language version becomes the 75th international adaptation of The Voice format.

The series sees contestants take part in “blind auditions” as they hope to impress the coaches and prompt them to turn their chairs to proceed to the next round.

The ITV series The Voice UK also features a Welshman as part of its coaching line-up, with Sir Tom Jones joining will.i.am, LeAnn Rimes and McFly‘s Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones.

The winner of the Welsh version will secure a 12-month mentoring scheme as well as further opportunities to perform on S4C programming.

“It’s great that the Land of Song is getting its own special version of the The Voice series,” Sir Bryn Terfel said.

Sian Eleri said she was “delighted to be presenting one of the biggest shows in the world”.

“For it to be happening on home soil with S4C is next level. Bring on those rotating chairs,” she added.

“As a nation we have produced some of the most successful singers in the world, and with this format we’re looking forward to discovering the next big voice from Wales,” added S4C’s interim chief content officer Geraint Evans.

The deadline to apply is 21 June, with auditions set to take place in North Wales on 12 July and in South Wales on 15 July.