Little Mix’s Leigh-Anne Pinnock signs deal with new PR firm ‘to work on solo projects’

Leigh-Anne Pinnock is starting a solo career after signing a new deal with a PR agency.

The singer has put pen to paper on a new deal with Satellite 414, just three months after her Little Mix bandmate Jesy Nelson announced she was leaving the group due to struggles with her mental health.

Satellite 414 – which is an entertainment PR agency – confirmed the news on Twitter on Tuesday, stating that Leigh-Anne’s new deal will cover her for ‘solo projects across music, film, and TV’.

They wrote: ‘Huge welcome to Leigh-Anne Pinnock as she joins our SATELLITE414 and Satellite Screen rosters for solo projects across Music, Film and TV. [sic]’ 

Leigh-Anne has said she’s ‘incredibly excited’ to get started, but has insisted she isn’t turning her back on her career with Little Mix.

She said: ‘This is such an incredibly exciting time for me and my career. I can’t wait to show everyone what I’ve got coming up. I will continue to work on my solo endeavours alongside my Little Mix commitments.’

MailOnline has approached reps for comment. 

The announcement comes after the group – consisting of Leigh-Anne, Jade Thirlwall, and Perrie Edwards – spoke about their future following the departure of Jesy in December.

Jade said: ‘I’m not saying that we’re co-dependent, but we do heavily rely on each other, so it’s been healthy to take a step back and think, “What do I want?”

‘As we come together and work together this year, we’ll have an even better and healthier relationship with that perspective.’This time’s taught me that I am still figuring out who I am, too…

‘It’s beautiful that we’re still a group, but we want to help push each other to do our own thing, too. It’s like a new dawn of Little Mix.’

And Perrie added: ‘That’s totally OK. We’re not going to know, individually. We’ve always had each other, it’s always Little Mix – it’s us.’

Whilst Leigh-Anne said: ‘It’s never been an option to not be together and we’ve always known that we are sisters.’

This follows reports that Jesy is said to be on Simon Cowell’s radar to fill one of the judges’ seats on next year’s X Factor panel.

Jesy, 29, found fame on the talent show in 2011 when she and Little Mix became the first-ever band to win the competition, under the tutelage of mentor Tulisa.

And with the show set to be rebooted in 2022, after taking a three-year break due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and a four-year break from its usual civilian format, it seems Simon has ideas to bring Jesy home.

A source told The Sun: ‘It’s a no-brainer for Simon to have someone as successful as Jesy, who the show made, back on the panel.

‘She knows the ups and downs of the music industry inside out, and what it takes to be a successful pop star.

‘Her name has been banded around by Simon and his team as someone who could breathe a bit of new life into the show when it’s back next year.’ 

Jesy has already appeared as a judge for Little Mix’s talent show, The Search, which has to date aired only one season.

Production on the series – which looks for a new band, rather than an array of categories like X Factor – was also interrupted by the pandemic. 

She quit the band in December 2020, shortly after The Search aired, following the release of Little Mix’s sixth studio album Confetti.