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Great Company with Jamie Laing

JESY NELSON - PART 2: Why I Walked Away From Little Mix

06 Feb 2026

Transcription

Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.

Chapter 1: What challenges did Jesy face growing up?

0.031 - 5.597 Jamie Laing

Coming up in this episode of Great Company. When you decided to leave, that must have been hard, right?

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6.298 - 21.613 Jesy Nelson

It's Little Mix! We were best mates. Internally, I was so sad. I just felt like I was faking it the whole time. I could not handle it. I couldn't deal with it. I had my really shit times in Little Mix, but I also had some of the best times of my life.

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22.034 - 23.135 Jamie Laing

Would there ever be a reunion tour?

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Chapter 2: How did bullying impact Jesy's confidence and health?

24.857 - 25.077 Jesy Nelson

All right.

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29.815 - 52.124 Jamie Laing

Hello, everyone. My name is Jamie Lang, and this is Great Company. Welcome back to Great Company, guys. Now, this is my part two of my conversation with Jessie Nelson. So if you haven't listened to part one, go back and listen to it. We released it on Wednesday. So in part one, Jessie spoke about her beautiful twins, Ocean Jade and Story Monroe, and their SMA diagnosis.

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52.345 - 72.276 Jamie Laing

SMA stands for spinal muscular atrophy. Now, in this episode today, in part two, we talk about Jessie's childhood. We talk about growing up, wanting to be an entertainer, losing her confidence and finding it again. We also talk about the X Factor little mix and her decision to leave the band. Before we get into it, I'm just going to ask you to do one quick thing for me, if that's possible.

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72.256 - 84.695 Jamie Laing

please just follow and subscribe to Great Company. It's totally free and we want to keep it that way. Okay, and it really helps us keep bringing the guests you love and making the show bigger and better for you every single week. If you can do that one thing, thank you so much.

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85.135 - 93.488 Jesy Nelson

Okay, let's get into part two with the amazing Jessie Nussan.

97.4 - 113.748 Jamie Laing

Where the documentary starts is like right at the beginning, right? And there's this moment in the documentary which I was like, it's footage of you as a kid and you're on stage and you're singing and your voice cracks. And for you, you say that's the kind of moment that you became aware of like audience and things like that.

113.828 - 123.424 Jamie Laing

And that for me, I don't know why, but this beautiful, sweet, gorgeous little girl singing and your voice cracks on stage. It was just like, oh my God. What were you like as a kid?

123.742 - 144.563 Jesy Nelson

I just always wanted to entertain people. So whether that was like making people laugh, whether that was singing, dancing, acting, I always knew that it was when I got older, that was what I wanted to do, just entertain. Even when I was at school, oh, I was so shit at school. Like I was a little bit naughty in terms of I was a bit of a class clown. I liked making people laugh.

145.544 - 153.512 Jesy Nelson

But in terms of like really knuckling down and like getting all of my schoolwork, I was just shit because I just felt like I knew that I wasn't going to do any of that

Chapter 3: What was Jesy's experience auditioning for The X Factor?

213.871 - 232.366 Jamie Laing

And then also on yourself, you kind of think you're stupid. I remember my English teacher said to me, I went, he was great though. And shout out, Mr. Hindley, wherever you are in the world. But he was amazing. He really was amazing. And he was a teacher kind of really sort of leaned into mine because I was very naughty. And I said, Miss Honey, why can't I spell?

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233.168 - 253.054 Jamie Laing

And he said, Jamie, it's because you're stupid. That's what he said to me in the class. And I was like, okay, I guess. Like, is it not because of something else? you automatically in your head, you sort of think if you're not achieving those grades, you sort of think less of yourself. And then I think what happens is that you kind of go and seek other things in other areas.

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253.074 - 263.889 Jamie Laing

And that's why I went into like sports and entertainment because I thought, well, if I can't achieve validation here, I need it from somewhere else. But take me back to being at school. School hard time, easy time, apart from the teachers? What were other kids like?

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263.969 - 265.631 Jesy Nelson

I went to like four different schools.

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266.172 - 266.452 Jamie Laing

Really?

266.572 - 276.625 Jesy Nelson

Yeah, so went to one with my brothers and my sister was the first one. And then I left because I wanted to go to like a proper theatre school. So I went to Sylvia Young Theatre School.

276.685 - 276.985 Unknown

You did.

277.406 - 278.908 Jesy Nelson

And Rita Ora was in my class.

278.928 - 279.248 Unknown

Let's go.

Chapter 4: What were the highs and lows of being in Little Mix?

386.344 - 391.374 Jesy Nelson

Yeah. Sorry, I know I'm literally going into so many different topics here.

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391.494 - 398.227 Jamie Laing

Are you kidding me? This is wonderful. Okay, so you're Sylvia Young, you're enjoying it. And then making friends, popular?

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398.267 - 422.002 Jesy Nelson

Yeah, I mean, I don't feel like I've ever been like, I feel like I've always been able to just get on with everyone. I feel like I'm quite a social butterfly. I feel like I can be in a room with anyone and I can chat to anyone. But then when I left Sylvia's, I was then put into a school that at the time was the only school that had space. And that was where I got really bullied.

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423.263 - 448.76 Jesy Nelson

And it completely broke my confidence. Because I was very, very confident as a child. And then I went to school and got really bullied. And then, yeah, I guess that's maybe where my confidence started to break down, I would say. How old were you at that point? 13, I'd say. Maybe 12, 13. Anyway, I eventually left that school because I couldn't deal with it.

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448.8 - 452.925 Jesy Nelson

And I got alopecia because of the stress from the bullying. And I left.

453.378 - 469.064 Jamie Laing

But just you brush over it so quickly. That is like only because I know that so many people who love you, adore you, who are listening to this right now are probably in a similar situation. Maybe they're 15, 16, 13 years old. Maybe they're at work, whatever it is. And they're going through this thing where people are being mean, they're being bullied.

469.104 - 484.327 Jamie Laing

And maybe, and I remember speaking to Luke Evans, right? He grew up in Wales and he was bullied. And he had this vision that, oh, one day he would get out of it. Yeah. But a lot of kids that age don't ever have that vision. They think they're stuck in this space and they're not going to be able to get out of it. And this is what life is going to be forever.

484.787 - 511.557 Jesy Nelson

But it's only as I've got older and I've really been through the shit that I've been through that I can now really understand a bully. Because I just, you know, I truly believe that no real genuine happy person that is secure within themselves would ever feel the need to, whether it be write a comment on someone's Instagram, whether it be say something to them in person, do that.

512.037 - 529.875 Jesy Nelson

Because I believe, and now I see them so differently because I, and I actually feel sad for them because I'm like, if you were truly happy, you wouldn't, you wouldn't be doing that. So there must be something really like deep and internal within you that's going on to make you want to do that. Because, you know,

Chapter 5: Why did Jesy decide to leave Little Mix?

703.356 - 711.535 Jesy Nelson

It's with Denzel Washington. I'm thinking, who's Denzel Washington at the time? But yeah, that was, I've still got the script to this day that's in the film.

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711.97 - 713.092 Jamie Laing

It's one of my favorite movies.

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713.112 - 717.658 Jesy Nelson

It's amazing. Greasy. Yeah. Oh my God. So yeah, so I've completely got off subject.

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717.678 - 723.867 Jamie Laing

Wait, wait, hang on a second. So you, so ever since you were even eight years old, you were hustling, auditioning, trying.

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723.887 - 728.714 Jesy Nelson

I just loved it. Honestly, like it just, it was, I've always wanted to be in entertainment.

728.734 - 731.999 Jamie Laing

What was it about it? Try and explain that to me because, yeah, what is it?

732.019 - 757.699 Jesy Nelson

It's funny you say this. So I think the reason that I love acting so much is because I don't have to be myself. And so, you know, when I do music videos, when I was in Little Mix, they were the bane of my life. Like, I cannot tell you how much I despised doing a music video. But any time we didn't have to be ourselves or we got to play a character or do a bit of acting, I was like, I loved it.

757.719 - 762.705 Jesy Nelson

I was like in my element. And I think that's the reason why, because I don't have to be myself.

762.825 - 766.749 Jamie Laing

Really? So you can then escape and become something else.

Chapter 6: How has motherhood changed Jesy's perspective on confidence?

868.811 - 873.097 Jamie Laing

I sat with him in a sawney while budgie smugglers once. I'm not even joking. It was a weird.

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873.277 - 887.936 Jesy Nelson

But now when I watch my audition back, I'm like, fair dues. Cause it was fucking horrendous. So I'm like, you had every right to say what you had to say. But obviously at the time, I just remember it being the year that Simon Cowell wasn't there. And he was the one that I was just like... Was that disappointing that he wasn't... I was so disappointed.

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887.956 - 889.558 Jesy Nelson

Yeah, because you're like... So disappointing.

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889.578 - 893.782 Jamie Laing

But like... You're like, it's going to be a dud because Simon's not there. That's what you're thinking, right?

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893.802 - 902.393 Jesy Nelson

But also I was like, they were telling me that Gary was the Simon. So I was like, okay. So when he obviously fucking like absolutely annihilated me, I was like, this is horrendous.

902.453 - 913.005 Jamie Laing

But describe a song who doesn't know. And again, it's in the documentary. It's amazing. But you go onto stage, it's X Factor. And it's also X Factor had changed by that point where it's then in front of a...

912.985 - 914.146 Jesy Nelson

A massive audience.

914.166 - 914.787 Jamie Laing

A massive audience.

914.807 - 916.068 Jesy Nelson

It's not just the one-on-one in a room.

Chapter 7: What does Jesy believe about the impact of fame?

1001.429 - 1006.276 Jesy Nelson

And she was like, absolutely not. She was like, you're doing it. She was like, I will stand in the queue for you.

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1006.517 - 1008.82 Jamie Laing

Because you were nervous? Because you were scared you didn't think you were going to achieve?

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1008.84 - 1029.51 Jesy Nelson

I just was like, probably, my fears probably were projecting at that point. And so I was just like, I don't really care to do this. But it was my mum that was like, no, listen, you're going to do it. If I have to stand in the queue and you can sit in the car and do your makeup, like my mum, honestly, she is just like the best.

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1029.592 - 1030.933 Unknown

Explain why. Talk to me about your mum.

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1030.953 - 1033.636 Jesy Nelson

Because she just... Oh, no, I'm going to get emotional now.

1033.736 - 1036.118 Unknown

It's all right. I'll get it. Don't worry. I'm there already, so it's okay.

1036.338 - 1043.625 Jesy Nelson

She's just like Wonder Woman to me. She's just the best.

1043.645 - 1044.245 Unknown

I'll give you this.

1044.265 - 1069.061 Jesy Nelson

Thank you. And it's only like... I mean, I've always known that about my mum, but you only really deep it when you become a mum and you realise all the shit that she sacrificed for her children. But yeah, I wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for my mum. Like she was the one who was like, you're doing it. And not in a way of like being a pushy mum. That's one thing I love about my mum.

Chapter 8: What advice does Jesy have for those facing bullying?

1224.704 - 1234.122 Jesy Nelson

She was like, why, darling? What's happened? And I told her, she's like, I'm sure it weren't that bad. And I was like, no, Mum, you don't understand what just happened.

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1234.603 - 1235.645 Jamie Laing

How many they clapped.

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1236.427 - 1240.435 Jesy Nelson

No, no, no. That is horrendous. No, but imagine right now.

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1240.815 - 1241.577 Jamie Laing

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

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1241.597 - 1243.3 Jesy Nelson

All of us being like, come on, Jamie.

1244.208 - 1244.969 Jamie Laing

I would probably do it.

1245.009 - 1247.632 Jesy Nelson

But honestly.

1247.672 - 1251.837 Jamie Laing

No, I can't even imagine when your nerves are through the roof. And also.

1251.877 - 1255.282 Jesy Nelson

Also, I'm just like not that kind of dancer. I'm not a freestyler.

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