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Popstar Jesy Nelson admitted she was "faking it" during her time in Little Mix - and she only stayed in the group for so long for one reason.

Jesy made her name after winning The X Factor with the group, which also included Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall, in 2011. They enjoyed extraordinary success before Jesy announced her departure from the group in December 2020 due to prolonged issues with her mental health.

While she said there were some "amazing days" as part of Little Mix, with whom she scored 17 UK top 10 songs, she also conceded it was "tough". It comes as it emerged Jesy made a heartbreaking sacrifice to improve the situation for her twin daughters.

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Her brother convinced her to stick it out with the group to "change your family's life".

Speaking to Jamie Laing's Great Company podcast, she said: "It was really tough’ (leaving Little Mix). I stayed because of my brother.

"I had to show up every day to a music video or an interview and I felt like I was faking it the whole time. I had amazing days but it was tough.

"I did want to leave the industry completely, My mum was like - it doesn’t matter, just leave and we’ll figure it out and my brother was like - you are so much stronger than you think you are. Just make as much money as you can, you’ve got a chance to really change your family's life.

"I can now go above and beyond for my girls too, because I worked hard."

Jesy, 34, has spoken candidly in recent weeks about the health issues that are affecting her twin daughters. They were born prematurely in May last year after a high-risk pregnancy.

Both children, called Ocean Jade and Stacey Monroe, suffer from spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type 1 and are unlikely to develop the ability to walk and may not live beyond the age of two.

Jesy has announced a new documentary as she continues to campaign for SMA tests at birth. She said that since becoming a mum she is the "most confident" she's ever been.

Speaking to Great Company, she added: "One thing I will say is, actually, since becoming a mum, I feel like I've got my confidence. So weird.

"I mean, I can't speak for all mums, but I feel that from what I've seen online, a lot of mums, when they get pregnant, have children, then lose their confidence and feel like they've lost themselves, whereas I feel like since I've had children, I'm like, the most confident I've ever been.

"It's like, the most I've ever loved myself. It's just the most powerful I've ever felt."

Jesy added that she doesn't need to teach her daughters anything because they've already taught her so much.