Little Mix have announced that singer Jesy Nelson is taking an extended break from the band due to medical reasons.
The news was confirmed by the band’s publicist and comes after Jesy missed both the final of Little Mix: The Search and their hosting gig at the MTV EMAs earlier this month due to illness.
A statement announcing the extension of her hiatus read, “Jesy is having extended time off from Little Mix for private medical reasons.
“We will not be issuing any further comment currently and ask media to please respect her privacy at this time.”
Although Jesy’s bandmates Jade Thirwall, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Perrie Edwards have not publicly commented on the news, fans took to social media to share the support for the 29-year-old.
“Get well soon Jesy. We will always be here waiting for you x,” wrote one.
CHECK OUT Little Mix's transformation through the years
Little Mix: Through the years (slider)
1 of 242011
After being put into a group by Kelly Rowland on The X Factor in 2011, the Little Mix girls rocked denim and trainers as they posed at the Judges Houses' stage of the competition.
2 of 242011
Throughout their time on The X Factor, Jade, Perrie, Jesy and Leigh-Anne stuck with the same 'colour and prints' theme for performances, each making an identify for themselves.
3 of 242011
Attending the Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 1 premiere in 2011 with their X Factor mentor Tulisa, the Little Mix girls dressed up in stunning LBDs.
4 of 242011
After winning The X Factor ahead of Marcus Collins, Little Mix started to make an identity as a band, co-coordinating their outfits both on stage and at events.
5 of 242012
One year on from their historic win on The X Factor, Little Mix returned to perform their brand new single, looking more grown up.
6 of 242012
At the launch for Little Mix's debut album 'DNA', Jade, Perrie, Leigh-Anne and Jesy looked stunning in black outfits.
7 of 242013
All of the Little Mix girls have experimented with their hair colours, but in 2013 Perrie went for purple, whilst Jade was rocking the colour blue.
8 of 242013
Attending their first ever BRIT Awards in 2013, Little Mix dressed up for the occasion, all wearing totally different outfits.
9 of 242013
Experimenting even further with her hair in 2013, Perrie changed her look from purple to dip dye pink later in the year.
10 of 242016
After taking some time off to work on their new album, Little Mix returned in 2016 with a brand new look. Looking a lot more grown up, the girls started to wear a lot more custom-designed outfits on stage.
11 of 242015
Perrie couldn't resist getting into the Disney spirit in 2015 when she made a trip to Disneyland Paris!
12 of 242016
Walking the red carpet ahead of their first ever BRIT Awards performance, Little Mix oozed glamour as they invited their mums along for the party.
13 of 242016
That same night the girls took to the stage in matching green and black outfits to give an incredible performance of their hit song 'Black Magic'.
14 of 242017
After receiving some harsh criticism online for some of the more risqué outfits, Little Mix wore suits for their performance of 'Power' during The X Factor finals in 2017.
15 of 242017
After taking more of an interest in fashion, attending various fashion events with her band mate Jade Thirlwal, Leigh-Anne started to take inspiration, wearing this cute number for her birthday in 2017.
16 of 242017
Little Mix embraced the race driving theme brilliantly in 2017 when they performed at F1 Live in London.
17 of 242017
The girls attended the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in Los Angeles in 2017, rocking the red carpet with their different outfit choices.
18 of 242017
Whilst Perrie, Jade and Leigh-Anne stuck with their natural hair colours in 2017, Jesy experimented a lot, even dying her hair bright pink!
19 of 242018
Looking completely stunning, Jade, Leigh-Anne, Jesy and Perrie rocked the red carpet at the 2018 BRIT Awards. Whilst most fans loved their look, Jesy, Jade and Perrie were quick to mock Leigh-Anne for wearing her 'dressing gown'.
20 of 242018
Little Mix stars Leigh-Anne and Jade attended The British Fashion Awards in 2018, wearing stunning dresses to the prestigious event.
21 of 242018
The girls went for a more retro look during a performance to their fans in Germany in 2018.
22 of 242018
At the launch of their amazing album 'LM5' in 2018, Leigh-Anne, Jesy, Perrie and Jade looked casual and chic as they signed copies of their album for fans.
23 of 242018
Ahead of their performance with American rapper Nicki Minaj, Jesy injected a bit of colour into Little Mix's red carpet look at the 2018 MTV EMA Awards, whilst Leigh-Anne rocked green dreadlocks.
24 of 242018
The girls then changed into smart black and white suits for their first ever performance of 'Woman Like Me' with Nicki Minaj.
Another tweeted, “We get it, and she should take all the time she needs. Her health & wellbeing will ALWAYS be #1. Mixers will be on standby for when she's ready to return & until then we are sending Jesy all the positive vibes and love in the world ❤️.”
“I know she won’t see this but I just hope she knows that we’re all sending her so much love and light,” added a third.
One more commented, “Sending all the love to her, praying she gets better soon. We miss her so much and can’t wait until she’s back.”
WATCH Little Mix sing-along to Nicki Minaj, Ariana Grande and Stormzy playing 'Never Mind The Lyrics' 🎶
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The band’s announcement comes just two weeks after the release of Little Mix’s sixth album Confetti, which debuted at number two on the UK albums chart.
It was first confirmed that Jesy would miss a number of the band’s appearances shortly after the album was released.
At the time a spokesperson said, “Jesy is unwell and will not be appearing on tonight’s final of Little Mix: The Search.
“She will also not be hosting or performing at tomorrow’s MTV EMAs.”
Little Mix are currently scheduled to tour the country in support of their album in April, although it’s thought the dates could be rescheduled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Get well soon, Jesy!