Former Little Mix star Jesy Nelson is well known for the unique spelling of her first name, but fans may be surprised to learn it’s actually just her nickname.
Jesy was actually named Jessica Louise Nelson on her birth certificate by her parents after they welcomed her to the world on June 14 1991.
The chart-topping star then shortened her name and came up with Jesy as she embarked on her global pop career after appearing on The X Factor in 2011.
At the time Jesy, 30, auditioned as a solo artist and was given the boot from the show, however, she was then brought back and joined forces with Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall to form Little Mix.
(Image: Instagram)
The girls went on to become the first-ever band to win the show and became one of the most successful girl groups of all time before she quit the band in December 2020.
Jesy had attended the famed Sylvia Young performing arts school alongside famous faces such as Rita Ora and appeared in films such as Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and About A Boy, as well as working in a pub before she found fame.
She is now getting ready to release her debut single as a solo artist – Boyz – which features sassy US rapper Nicki Minaj.
(Image: Instagram)
She has teased the launch of the track to fans on her social media accounts this week, with behind-the-scenes dance rehearsal footage and a clip of the intro to the song where Nicki refers to her as the “UK baddie.”
Jesy recently admitted that she doesn’t care what people think of her leaving Little Mix as she had to do what makes her happy.
She said: “I feel a lot of people think that it’s selfish I’ve left the group.
“I really didn’t want to upset people and I didn’t want people to think that about me, but I don’t care anymore.
(Image: Jesy Nelson/Instagram)
“It was ten years of my life that I was very unhappy with and I needed to take myself out of that and genuinely do what’s going to make me happy.”
Jesy also compared being in the girl band to “a machine” as she justified her choices.
She continued: “Some people may not understand that, but you live once and you have to do what makes you happy.
“Being in Little Mix is literally like a machine. You don’t have any time off. You can’t switch off.
“Even when you go home, your phone is constantly going off about work and your life is planned out.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
