Little Mix (Musical group) - Our world: Our OFFICIAL autobiography

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India | New Zealand | South Africa

Michael Joseph is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies whose addresses can be found at global.penguinrandomhouse.com.

First published in 2016

Text copyright Little Mix, 2016

The moral right of the author has been asserted

Cover design: Smith & Gilmour

Cover photography: Matt Irwin

ISBN: 978-1-405-92743-7

Introduction

Sitting down to write this book took us back to how it all began, in 2011, before anyone had even thought of Little Mix. We didnt know each other but all any of us wanted was to sing and perform. At the same time, the idea of being pop stars seemed massively out of reach. Luckily for us, our families believed in us and gave us the push we needed to chase the dream we shared.

Well always be thankful.

None of us dared to think we could go all the way on The X Factor. Its not the kind of thing that happens to normal girls like us Little did we know!

We not only succeeded, we made history as the first group ever to win the show. Looking back, we all believe that fate, or destiny, or whatever you want to call it, was on our side. Right people, right place, right time. From the word go, it was as if Little Mix was meant to be and as soon as we got put into a group together things began to fall into place. We realized we all had the same vision.

Once we found each other, we found our voice.

At the heart of everything weve achieved so far is our unbreakable friendship. We dont even know how to find the words for how close we are. Were family four sisters whod do anything for each other.

In so many ways our lives have changed beyond anything we knew before, yet were still the same four girls who auditioned for The X Factor. Sometimes we look at each other and go: This is insane!

Knowing that so many of you relate to our music means so much. For us, being on stage and seeing thousands of people sing the words to our songs is the most magical feeling. Were lucky to have the best fans ever there for us, and each other. We cant thank you enough for your love and support, for making this whole experience so incredible.

More than anything, we hope our story will inspire you to chase your dreams even when they seem impossible. We know how that feels and were proof it can be done. As long as you give your best, put in the hard graft and never stop believing, you really can change your life.

Go for it!

DOB:

26 DECEMBER 1992

IN THREE WORDS:

THOUGHTFUL, PECULIAR, LOVING

MOST LIKELY TO SAY:

ANYONE CAN ACHIEVE THEIR DREAMS IF THEY HAVE THE COURAGE TO PURSUE THEM.

Growing up, it was me, my mam and dad, and my big brother, Karl. We were working class, what Id call a typical normal family, living in a terraced house in a little cul-de-sac in South Shields, in the North East. My dad, Jimmy, is a taxi driver and, when I was little, my mam, Norma, worked as the business manager at the school I went to. I absolutely loved primary school and with my mam being around I couldnt go wrong. My brothers five years older and I idolized him. I still do! I always wanted to be like him so everything he did, I copied. If he was into a certain type of music, so was I. If he played football, I wanted to too. Id go with my mam to watch him play every weekend, cheering him on. I worshipped him. I was quite tomboyish as a child, but was also into tap and ballet. It was a really lovely childhood.

SHE WAS A BIG GIRL AND WOULD PUSH ME AROUND AND TELL ME I WAS UGLY ID NEVER EXPERIENCED RACISM OR PREJUDICE BEFORE THEN.

When I got to secondary school things changed. All my friends went to a different school so I was on my own with no mates. I was a bit of a swot, painfully shy, and didnt stand a chance really. I got bullied quite badly. Id get picked on by the popular gang and there was this one girl who really had it in for me. She was in my year but she was a big girl and would push me around and tell me I was ugly. This particular girl used to corner me in the toilets, shout things like P*** and throw bleach powder at me once she got her mates to hold me down and drew a bindi on my forehead. They would point and laugh. Id never experienced racism or prejudice before then. I had no one to talk to about it so it got to the point where I wasnt really going into school, or Id turn up and hide in the toilets or in my drama teachers classroom and stay there all day, waiting for the bell to go, then Id run. What was weird was that outside school I was quite confident, going to drama and dance classes and singing in musicals and stuff, but at school I was an absolute mess. Just walking into the building would fill me with dread.

Eventually, my mam found out what was going on, stormed into school and told the head of year to sort it out. I was mortified, not wanting anyone to know, thinking Id be even more uncool. The school suspended the girl who was bullying me, then she got moved to another class and from then on things got better. A girl called Ruth was told to chaperone me and thats how I got to know her best friend, Holly. To start with Holly hated it because she was lumbered with the geek, taking her friend away from her, but as time went on we became close and weve been best friends ever since. We look back now and find the whole situation hilarious, especially since were so inseparable now. My other best friend, Anna, I used to sing with. She moved to my school in Year 8 and thankfully I then had a few friends around me.

I was about thirteen when I got anorexia. I think it was the culmination of a lot of stuff, not just the bullying. My mam and dad were arguing a lot and my Granda Mohammed, who I was really close to, died. He was everything to me, the nicest man ever, and so calming to be around. He lived at the bottom of our road, so Id always be round there, every day. Then he got ill and went into hospital. A couple of weeks later he died of heart failure. Id been in to see him and, looking back, it was as if he knew what was coming because when I was leaving he kissed me on the forehead and said, Look after yourself. I love you. It seemed weird. I said, I love you, Granda, thinking Id see him the next day, and left. That night he died.