Jesy Nelson's career timeline: From Little Mix to solo music
She released her second single in 2023
Jesy Nelson decided to quit Little Mix back in December 2020, however that didn't stop her signing a solo record deal in May 2021. The former Little Mix singer released her first solo song 'Boyz' in October 2021, followed by 'Bad Thing' in 2023.
We thought we'd take a trip down memory lane and look back at Jesy's career so far. From where it all started in Little Mix, to her brand new solo adventure.
Jesy Nelson's biggest career moments:
2011: Jesy auditions as a solo artist on The X Factor
With both Beyoncé and Missy Elliot as her inspirations, Jesy signed up to audition for Simon Cowell's prime-time entertainment show The X Factor in 2011, performing 'Bust Your Windows' to judges Gary Barlow, Kelly Rowland, Louis Walsh and Tulisa.
With Kelly and Tulisa both impressed, Jesy made it through to the Bootcamp stage of the competition.
2011: Jesy gets put into a group called Faux Pas
After failing to impress all four judges at bootcamp, Jesy, along with Perrie Edwards and two other solo auditionees, were put into a group called Faux Pas.
At the same time, Jade Thirlwall and Leigh-Anne Pinnock were placed into another four-piece called Orion.
2011: Little Mix are formed
After The X Factor judges witnessed both performances, Jesy was later put into a group called Rhythmix alongside Perrie, Jade and Leigh-Anne, with the band later changing their name to Little Mix for legal reasons.
With four amazing vocalists, the girls sailed through the rounds with their mentor Tulisa, and become the first ever band to win The X Factor in December 2011.
2011-2019: Jesy Nelson's Number 1 singles with Little Mix
Jesy Nelson managed to pick up four Number 1 singles during her nine-year stint in the band.
'Cannonball' in 2011
'Wings' in 2012
'Black Magic' in 2015'
'Shout Out to My Ex' in 2016
2012-2019: Jesy Nelson's albums with Little Mix
With Jesy in the band, Little Mix released an incredible six studio albums, with three off them gaining 1 billion Spotify streams each.
'DNA' in 2012
'Salute' in 2013
'Get Weird' in 2015
'Glory Days' in 2016
'LM5' in 2018
'Confetti' in 2020
2013-2019: Jesy Nelson on tour with Little Mix
During her time in the band, Jesy took part in six mammoth tours with the Little Mix girls, playing across the world to millions of fans in sold-out arenas and stadiums.
'DNA Tour' in 2013
'The Salute Tour' in 2014
'The Get Weird Tour' in 2016
'The Glory Days Tour' in 2017
'Summer Hits Tour' in 2018
'LM5 - The Tour' in 2019
2011-2020: Jesy Nelson's awards with Little Mix
As well as being nominated for and winning a mass amount of awards such as the MTV Awards, the Glamour Awards and the Teen Choice Awards, Little Mix have won an incredible three BRIT Awards.
The girls won British Single for 'Shout Out To My Ex' in 2017, before picking up the award in the Video of the Year category for 'Women Like Me' in 2019. Jesy then won her final BRIT with the band in May 2021, as they become the first female band to win British Group.
September 2019: Odd One Out documentary
Jesy teamed up with the BBC in 2019 to release a ground-breaking documentary called Odd One Out, which highlighted the affects of bullying and raised awareness for mental health.
Odd One Out followed Jesy Nelson's journey of self-acceptance after being bullied by online trolls incessantly after rising to fame on The X Factor, with the star even bravely opening up about the moment she tried to take her own life.
Odd One Out aired on BBC One on Thursday 12th September 2019 at 9pm, and it was later added to the BBC iPlayer.
January 2020: Jesy wins an NTA Award
After picking up a nomination for her Odd One Out documentary, Jesy attended the 2021 National Television Awards in January 2020, where she was crowed the winner in the Factual Award category.
After winning the award, Jesy told fans: 'Guys I honestly do not even know where to begin with this post! I woke up this morning and my heart is bursting with happiness! I cannot thank you all enough for making this moment happen, there are no words to describe how this moment felt and because of you guys you made this one of the most magical nights of my life! I love you all so much thank you ❤️'. (sic)
May 2020: Jesy wins another award for Odd One Out
As it continued to break BBC iPlayer viewing records, Jesy's documentary Odd One Out picked up another prestigious award, this time a Visionary Award for Documentary of the Year.
Sharing this photo of herself holding the award, Jesy wrote on Instagram: 'This morning I received this incredible award for my documentary Odd one out from @visionaryartsuk and my heart feels so happy! Thank you so much to every single person that voted for me this honestly means the world and I'm so thankful that it still continues to have such a positive impact on others ❤️.' (sic)
September 2020: The Search
Despite initially being scheduled to air in Spring 2020, Little Mix's very own TV talent show; The Search, was postponed until later in the year due to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Jesy, along with Perrie, Leigh-Anne and Jade, served as both mentors and judges on the singing competition, with the girls looking for a brand new band!
It was Vocal and Instruments Group Since September, made up of Harry, Patrick, Matthew and Jacob, who were crowned the winners.
November 2020: Jesy takes an extended break from Little Mix
It was announced in November 2020 that Jesy would be taking an 'extended break' from Little Mix due to undisclosed medical reasons.
Announcing the extended break on Twitter, Simon Jones PR wrote: 'Jesy is having extended time off from Little Mix for private medical reasons. We will not be issuing any further comment currently and ask media to please respect her privacy at this time.'
December 2020: Jesy quits Little Mix
After an amazing nine years in the band, alongside Jade, Perrie and Leigh-Anne, Jesy made the tough decision to leave Little Mix, admitting it had recently been 'taking a toll' on her mental health.
She released this emotional statement thanking fans at the time.
December 2020: Jesy quits Little Mix
Following Jesy's statement, Little Mix wrote online: 'After an amazing 9 years together Jesy has made the decision to leave Little Mix. This is an incredibly sad time for all of us but we are fully supportive of Jesy.
'We love her very much and agree that it is so important that she does what is right for her mental health and well-being. We are still very much enjoying our Little Mix journey and the 3 of us are not ready for it to be over.
'We know that Jesy leaving the group is going to be really upsetting news for our fans. We love you guys so much and are so grateful for your loyalty and continued support of all of us.' (sic)
February 2021: Jesy teases she's working on solo music
Uploading this stunning snap of herself to Instagram in February 2021, Jesy got EVERYBODY talking in the comments section with her caption.
The singer captioned the shot with a number of music emojis, writing: 'Let's go', leading many to think she was back in the studio.
February 2021: More teasing of solo music
As if that wasn't enough, Jesy shared a number of photos and videos in the studio alongside songwriters Patrick Patrikios and Hanni Ibrahim, who have previously worked with Little Mix on a number of their albums.
March 2021: Jesy shares snippet of solo music
Jesy sent her fans into overdrive in March 2021, sharing a video from inside of the recording studio! Despite muting the video so we couldn't hear the track, Jesy filmed a computer screen with soundwaves, writing, 'I can't wait for you to hear this'. (sic)
April 2021: Jesy confirms she's working on solo music
Speaking during a candid interview with Cosmopolitan Magazine in April 2021, Jesy confirmed the news we were all hoping for... That she IS working on solo music.
She said: "Music is my life. It's so powerful for me. I'm in the studio just having fun. I loved the music I made with Little Mix, but it wasn't the kind of music I listen to. It just feels so nice to be making music that I love. I don't know when I'm going to bring it out. I feel really content and happy. It's the weirdest, best feeling in the world."
May 2021: Jesy helps Little Mix make BRIT Award history
Despite leaving the band in late 2020, Jesy picked up a BRIT Award alongside Jade, Perrie and Leigh-Anne in May 2021, with the girls becoming the first ever girl band to win in the British Group category.
Although she didn't attend the ceremony, Jesy reacted to the news by posting this picture to her Instagram Story. The girls also thanked Jesy in their powerful acceptance speech.
May 2021: Solo deal
After months of teasing her fans, in May 2021 Jesy finally confirmed she'd signed her first ever solo record deal with Polydor Records.
She shared this snap of herself on Instagram, writing: 'So excited to announce that I've signed my first ever solo record deal with @polydorrecords @universalmusicgroup. This is such a pinch me moment. I cannot wait for you guys to hear what I've been working on 🙊❤️'. (sic)
June 2021: Jesy teases first clip of solo music
Fans were treat to a six second snippet of what was believed to be Jesy's debut solo single in June. Although it didn't give much away, you can clearly hear Jesy's vocals on the short clip she posted to Instagram.
August 2021: Jesy deletes all Instagram posts
Jesy dropped the biggest hint yet that new music was about to arrive at the start of August, deleting all of her posts and unfollowing everybody on Instagram. She also changed her profile picture to a solid pink background.
August 2021: Jesy reveals the name of her debut solo single
In mid-August, Jesy confirmed her debut solo single will be called 'Boyz', sharing this photo on her Instagram page.
October 2021: Jesy drops debut single 'Boyz'
After months of teasing, Jesy finally dropped her debut solo single 'Boyz' featuring Nicki Minaj on Friday 8th October. The track samples P Diddy's hit 'Bad Boys For Life'.
October 2021: Jesy gives her first live solo performance
Jesy appeared on The Graham Norton Show on Friday 29th October, giving the first live performance of her new single 'Boyz'.
2022: Jesy Nelson working on her debut solo album
Since leaving Little Mix, Jesy has released her first solo song, 'Boyz', however she is yet to release her debut solo album. The singer has been keeping her fans updated with photos and videos of her in the studio, so we're hoping we'll be able to hear the finished product soon!
In October 2022, Jesy revealed to her fans that she would be releasing new music 'early next year', but wants to make sure that the tunes are 'perfect' before doing so.
2023: Jesy begins teasing new music
Jesy began 2023 by teasing brand new music! Sharing a video of herself singing along with rapper Zion Foster accompanying her on the piano, Jesy could be heard singing a beautiful R&B style melody - very far removed from her days in Little Mix! This came after rumours in December 2022 that she was preparing to release single 'Cried Out' with a music video having allegedly already been filmed... Watch this space!
2023: Jesy announced her second single is 'Bad Thing'
Jesy Nelson announced her second solo single was be called 'Bad Thing', with the track later being released on 14th April 2023.
Now read:
Jesy Nelson confirms she's signed a solo record deal
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