Normani Discusses Her Traumatizing Time in Fifth Harmony
In an interview with The Cut, singer Normani recently spoke about her experience with her former girl group, Fifth Harmony.
For the 26-year-old, being part of Fifth Harmony was “a blessing that also traumatized her,” and her experience in the group felt “like a prison sentence ordered and duly served.”
The group was formed in 2012 on The X Factor with fellow members Dinah Jane, Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, and Camila Cabello. During the six years the group was together, they achieved commercial success and sold around 33 million records. Their popular songs included “Work from Home,” “Worth It,” “Don’t Say You Love Me,” and “All in My Head (Flex).” In March 2018, the group went on an indefinite hiatus following Cabello’s departure in December 2016.
Normani initially hid behind the group, stating, “I didn’t want to be at the forefront. It wasn’t until later that I started feeling like a token.”
The “Wild Side” singer also experienced intense racism during this time. She recalled being called “Normonkey” and receiving death threats in 2016. Normani also witnessed sickening images circulating of her face photoshopped onto gorillas and lynched Black people. This came after a tense interview where she described Cabello as “quirky” and “cute,” and fans attacked her. It was also later revealed that Cabello had made racist posts during the group’s early days.
“It was devastating that this came from a place that was supposed to be a safe haven and a sisterhood,” Normani expressed in 2020.
The “Motivation” singer also revealed that her record label never contacted her when facing public vitriol. “We just continued to do shows, and I was fearing for my life. But they continued to put me out there on the stage. It was pretty much like, ‘The show goes on,’” she stated.
Following Cabello’s departure, audio leaked of Jauregui crying that the group was overworked and “doing f*cking labor every day and [seeing] nothing,” as well as being treated like “literal slaves.”
In 2017, Normani and the other three members expressed to the L.A. Times that they were burned out and being controlled like puppets. At 20 years old, Normani was traumatized by her experience in Fifth Harmony. She lost her sense of self and felt unprotected yet exposed. “I have given so much of myself to you by choice. I choose to let you in,” she posted on X in 2016.
Since then, she has remained relatively private and limited her social media presence. The singer stated that while her management handles her social media, she sees much of what her fans say.
Normani’s highly anticipated “Dopamine” album will be released on June 14. Her first single, “1:59,” can be listened to here.
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