Romford's Jesy Nelson denies 'blackfishing' accusations
Jesy Nelson's first solo single - titled Boyz - features American rapper Nikki Minaj. - Credit: PA
A former Little Mix star from Romford has denied accusations of “blackfishing” in her latest solo music video.
Jesy Nelson, 30, was criticised on social media about her appearance in her debut solo track Boyz, which features Nicki Minaj.
Blackfishing - a play on the term catfish popularised by a TV show of the same name - is used to describe someone who is not black who misrepresents themselves as black or mixed race.
On an Instagram live hosted on Nicki Minaj’s platform, Jesy said her intention was “never ever to offend people of colour with this video and song".
She added: "Growing up as a young girl, this is the music I listened to and these are the videos I watched.
“For me personally the 90s/2000s hip hop RnB music, I will stand to this day, was the best year of music made, I personally think.
"So I wanted to celebrate that and that era of music as it's what I love. My intentions were never to offend anyone
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"Genuinely, it hurts me that I may have offended people and hurt people's feelings just by celebrating something that I love."
