I’m a Little Mix stan - and Jesy Nelson is right to put her mental health first

In May 2014, bright-eyed 14-year-old me queued giddy with excitement outside the O2 arena for  my first concert — Little Mix’s Salute tour.  

For me and the thousands of other young girls there, Little Mix were the girl band of our formative years. They were our generation’s Spice Girls, carrying the torch of electric feminist anthems and contagious feel-good energy.

As a Little Mix stan, the news on Monday that Jesy Nelson is leaving the band was heartbreaking.

Unusually though, her departure was not due to a fallout or to start a solo career — instead she told fans that being part of the group had “taken a toll on my mental health”. Announcing her permanent exit after a six-week “extended break”, she repeated the sentiments expressed in her award-winning 2019 documentary Odd One Out: “I find the constant pressure of being in a girl group and living up to expectations very hard.”

Fans like me may be far from happy, but Nelson’s willingness to be candid about her mental health is further proof of what a brilliant role model she is. She has reminded a generation of her young fans that pausing, stepping back and saying “no” if you need to is OK. There is nothing brave about struggling through when you need to take a breather.  

Quitting does not necessarily equate to failure — there is no shame in prioritising your mental health and removing yourself from a damaging situation.

This is something we are all guilty of forgetting. It’s very easy to slip into the toxic mindset of normalising poor mental health, convincing ourselves that being on the verge of burnout is a necessary side effect of working life.  

Little Mix have consistently been outspoken and progressive on a range of important issues, from racism to LGBTQ+ rights to body image to mental health, and this is yet another example of their positive impact in the cultural sphere.  

So while it’s devastating to see Jesy go, she can only be applauded for her brave decision.  Let’s hope that she can now enjoy as much happiness as she has provided to so many of us for the past nine years.