‘She wants Boyz to be released with a bang’: Jesy Nelson’s US debut suffers a major blow as collaborator Nicki Minaj pulls out of the MTV VMAs where they were ‘scheduled to perform together’
Jesy Nelson has reportedly made it her mission to crack the music industry in the US with her hotly anticipated solo career.
However according to The Sun on Friday, the former Little Mix star, 30, has suffered a major blow with collaborator Nicki Minaj, 38, pulling out of Sunday’s MTV Video Music Awards at the last minute.
Reports suggested Nicki would join Jesy on stage in New York to perform her debut single Boyz – no doubt increasing her chances of success on the US charts.
‘She wants Boyz to be released with a bang’: Jesy Nelson’s US debut has reportedly suffered a major blow as collaborator Nicki Minaj pulls out of Sunday’s MTV VMAs performance
Sources reportedly told the publication Jesy flew out to the US specifically for the chance to perform Boyz alongside Nicki on stage at the MTV VMAs.
‘However Nicki has now dropped out, meaning that idea is now in the bin and Jesy’s big reveal has been pushed back even further,’ they said.
While the single is reportedly still on track to be released later this month, sources went on to claim that Jesy is ‘frustrated’ by her mission to crack the US losing steam.
‘Jesy is raring to go and these things are out of her control. It’s incredibly frustrating as she wants Boyz to be released with a bang. And at the moment, it all seems to be losing a bit of traction,’ the insider said.
Skipping this year: It was reported Nicki, 38, would join Jesy on stage in New York to perform her debut single Boyz. Nicki is pictured at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards in New York
However a representative for Jesy told MailOnline on Saturday that Jesy and Nicki were never scheduled to perform together on stage at the MTV VMAs.
‘Jesy was not scheduled to perform with Nicki at the VMAs. She is in the US completing studio writing sessions,’ they said.
On Thursday, Nicki shared on Twitter that she’s not performing at the award show.
She announced her sudden departure the same day that her husband Kenneth Petty, 43, pleaded guilty to failing to register as a sex offender in California.
Nicki was never among the performers announced for the VMAs, but that didn’t stop her fans from asking if she would be at the award show.
Setback? Sources said Jesy flew out to the US specifically for the chance to perform Boyz alongside Nicki on stage at the MTV VMAs, but the idea is ‘now in the bin’
In quoting one fan, the rapper claimed she was part of the program but had backed out at the last minute.
‘I just pulled out. I’ll explain another day,’ she wrote while quoting the original tweet.
The Anaconda artist made it clear there were no hard feelings for any of the executives involved in the show.
‘But I love those guys at MTV,’ she added. ‘Thank you [VMAs producer] Bruce [Gilmer]. I love you so much.’
‘She’s raring to go’: While the single is reportedly still on track to be released later this month, sources went on to claim that Jesy is ‘frustrated’ by her mission to crack the US losing steam
Back next year: Nicki was never announced as a VMAs performer, but she replied to a fan on Twitter that she had ‘just pulled out’ on Thursday. She skipped the explanation but vowed to be there in 2022
Nicki was last featured at the award show in 2018, when she performed multiple songs from her Queen album.
Should the reports be true, Nicki’s departure is a setback for Jesy’s US debut.
The star left British pop group Little Mix in December 2020 after nine years, saying her participation in the group had taken a toll on her mental health.
As a foursome, they recorded six UK top 10 albums and four number one singles.
Going solo: Jesy said an emotional goodbye to her Little Mix bandmates last year. Pictured with Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Perrie Edwards and Jade Thirlwall in 2018