Normani is happier than ever now that she's less than two weeks away from releasing her long-awaited debut album, but back in her Fifth Harmony days, she sure wasn't on as much dopamine.
In an interview with Rolling rock Posted on Wednesday (June 5), the “Motivation” singer got candid about her bittersweet feelings about her girl group's tough days. “I'm grateful for all of it, even the times I may have felt inadequate or less than,” she told the publication. “It definitely has a lot to do with why I am the way I am.”
“It definitely affected my confidence,” she continued. “Would I have done some things differently or wished some things had been done differently? Of course, but I also don't want to sit here and make it sound like it wasn't part of my story.”
Normani first found fame after this The X Factor The audition led to her being placed in 5H with Ally Brooke, Dinah Jane, Lauren Jauregui and Camila Cabello. There have been frequent reports of internal conflict, and the Georgia-born, Houston-raised singer has been open in the past about the racism she experienced when so-called fans confronted her with her bandmates.
“We were babies,” she says now of her former teammates. “We were so innocent and I think that's the struggle, in your view, to face reality under very unreal circumstances. I always say we did the best we could with what we had, so I'm proud of that.”
“There are so many I don't even remember why I suppressed them,” Normani added. “This is just my way of protecting myself from having to deal with everything. But what I remember is that it wasn't all bad. Like yes, we struggled, but it was also really beautiful in what we accomplished together.”
After many years of delay, Normani's first solo album dopamine is set to be released on June 14th. In the interview, she revealed that the record was partly inspired by Brandy – whose vocals appear on the LP – as well as Janet Jackson. “It's literally why I do what I do and why I'm able to be where I am: Black women,” she told the publication. “They redefined the standard of beauty, but also just the standard in music.”
“I am strong, despite everything I have endured,” she added. “[Dopamine‘s] a testament to my strength, resilience and discipline. I am much more confident, much more comfortable. I did a really good job of navigating and coming back to who I am and recognizing the beauty. I trust myself a lot more.”
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/normani-says-being-fifth-harmony-took-a-toll-confidence-1235702096/
