Former The Voice judge Jessie, who has faced a barrage of criticism for pulling out of concerts, has a congenital heart problem which she says is debilitating.
“I still have a heart deficiency and have days when I struggle,” she says. “The fans don’t get that sometimes. The abuse that you get if you cancel a show...it’s scary.”
Jessie, 25, called off her performance at the Phoenix Park in Ireland in the summer where she was due to support Justin Timberlake, then pulled out of a last-minute appearance on Irish national radio station RTE 2FM and a gig in Paris. She also left fans fuming when she rescheduled her sold-out March 2013 arena tour to this month due to extended recording commitments.
“I’ve had death threats for cancelling shows!” the Price Tag singer tells Time Out. “With social media young people use words of hatred so flippantly now. It’s either,‘I love you!’ or, ‘I hate you and I want you to die!’ There’s no middle ground. Everything’s an extreme because people want to be noticed.”
The singer adds: “I used to comment back but I’ve learned not to do that. I’ve had fans go,‘I didn’t mean it. I just wanted to get your attention."