Perrie Edwards opens up about Zayn Malik split and Jesy Nelson fallout | indy100

Perrie Edwards says she had 'breakdowns' after split from Zayn Malik

Great Company with Jamie Laing

Perrie Edwards has reflected on her previous relationship with Zayn Malik and lifted the lid on her fall out with ex Little Mix bandmate Jesy Nelson.

Speaking on The Great Company podcast with Jamie Laing, the 'Passenger Princess' singer spoke about her break up from the former One Direction band member, revealing how "tough" it was to navigate in the public eye as she experienced "serious breakdowns".

The two who met during her time on The X Factor in 2011, went on to confirm their relationship in 2012, and then got engaged in 2013 but later split up in 2015.

"When you go through heartbreak, it is hellish. You can't eat. You can’t sleep. You feel horrendous," Edwards said, who is now engaged to Celtic F.C. footballer Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and they have two children together.

"You feel abandoned and you don’t feel good enough, and you feel like you’ve been left for something better, or whatever it is.

"What makes it even worse is I feel like the world was then looking at me, laughing at me."

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She added, "I had like serious breakdowns, because it wasn’t just the heartbreak I was dealing with. I was dealing with everybody looking at me and I felt ridiculed."

It was through this challenging time that the 'Power' singer said she "couldn’t cope" but felt the need to "power through" for the sake of her bandmates - Jade Thirlwall, Leigh-Ann Pinnock, and Jesy Nelson.

"I also was getting followed every two seconds and asked about it 24/7, and it was the headlines, it was everywhere, and it was a lot," she said.

When asked by Laing if Malik also experienced the similar struggles post-breakup, Edwards noted, "There was a bit of an overlap.

"I think when you’re moving on with somebody else you always get on better. When you’re the one left behind, that’s when it’s hard.

"It’s like, 'oh s***, they’ve left me for someone more beautiful than me, someone better than me’. Whatever it is, that’s how it felt at the time.

"Then you have a song that they’ve written about you, but then someone else is in the [music] video – it was one thing after the other," appearing to refer to Malik's 2016 music video for hit song 'Pillowtalk' which featured his then-girlfriend and model Gigi Hadid.

"I just remember that, and it was the nail in the coffin."

Edwards also addressed the fall out with Nelson who she described as being "difficult" and accusing her of not taking accountability for her behaviour before she left the group in 2020, citing mental health reasons with the band continuing on as a trio until they announced their hiatus in 2022.

"What annoys me is the most, and again I have to be careful how I say this as I don't want to seem like a b**** but for me what upsets me the most is when situations like this happen and the other person doesn't take any accountability, that boils my blood!" she said.

"I am not blaming everything on you, I am not saying that she's this f****** monster and everything was her thought blah, blah, blah but take some accountability for your actions and realise you were difficult, you did have difficult moments."

The singer continued: "Granted there were reasons for those moments but you can only pick someone up so many f****** times before you start loosing track of your own sanity."

On whether there was potential that the ex bandmates could be in each others lives again in the future, Edwards was open to it but admitted Nelson's recent documentary Jesy Nelson: Life After Little Mix caused her to "withdraw again."

"If I am being completely transparent part of me wanted to until the documentary and then part of me withdraw again. This is the thing I am not a horrible person, I haven't got a band bone in my body but I can cut you off. I can cut you out of my life like that, if you upset me and hurt me in a way there's not really any going back," she said.

"I don't have the capacity for someone like that in my life anymore and that might make me sound like a b**** but I just don't have that the energy for it and as much as I will always love her I don't think I can hack that energy in my space."

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