Leigh-Anne Pinnock recalls racism aged 9 when classmate said she was ‘from the jungle’

‘I knew it was racism,’ recalls Little Mix singer

(Getty Images)

Leigh-Anne Pinnock has spoken about the first time she experienced racism at the age of nine, when a classmate told her she was “from the jungle”.

Speaking on Channel 4’s new documentary, The Talk, which features a number of black celebrities discussing their own experiences of racism, the Little Mix singer explained how she immediately recognised the incident as racism.

“In primary school, a boy wrote on a bit of paper, ‘Name: Leigh-Anne/Age: Nine/Nationality: Jungle’,” Pinnock said.

“I saw it, and my heart just dropped. I knew it racism. I was nine years old, I knew it was racism.

“I was just distraught by it.”

It’s not the first time Pinnock has spoken about the racism she has encountered.

In May, the singer opened up about her experiences with racism in an emotional video, in which she said: “I sing to fans who don’t see me or hear me or cheer me on. My reality is feeling anxious before fan events and signings because I always feel like I’m the least favoured.”

Many other famous faces discussed their experiences with racism on The Talk, which aired on Tuesday, including Tinie Tempah and Emeli Sande, as well as Marvin and Rochelle Humes.

Rochelle recalled being told she could not attend a friend’s party when she was seven years old because the friend’s father was racist.

“I’m not upset for me, I’m just upset because I think, my little girl is the same age,” she said.

“I just don’t know how I would handle that.”