ABC’s Dancing With the Stars is supposedly a wholesome program that the entire family can partake in.
However, for one contestant, Normani Kordei, a member of mega-successful girl group Fifth Harmony, what goes on offline is anything but family-friendly.
On Monday’s live episode, the 20-year-old opened up about the vicious cyberbullying attacks she has endured.
She and partner Val Chmerkovsky performed an emotionally charged contemporary dance to “Freedom” by Anthony Hamilton and Elayna Boynton. The singer said the piece was “symbolic of times that I’ve felt helpless and desperate.”
“I got bullied terribly on social media. I did an interview. It was taken out of context completely and there were images. People were calling me the N word. It was really ugly,” Kordei said to People magazine. “It was every time I went online it’s ‘Oh, how much we hate you. How talentless you are.’ They actually made images of me being whipped, beaten, hung.”
She continued, “I shouldn’t want to change the color of my skin or texture of my hair or the fact that I’m a woman. I felt really alone. And just like everybody hated me.
“We all want to be loved. We all want to feel accepted, but when that doesn’t happen, then it just breaks you,” she admitted.
After her emotional contemporary number with Chmerkovsky, the singer hugged her partner as tears welled up in her eyes. Despite it all—blackgirlmagic prevailed and Kordei and Chmerkovsky were awarded a perfect score for the dance.
1. Today Would Have Been Prince's 61st Birthday, We Are Honoring His Life
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2. Prince wrote his first song at age 7. He titled it “Funk Machine.”
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3. As a child, Prince struggled with epilepsy
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4. Prince once sued Adobe Photoshop to prevent fans from altering his photos. Unfortunately, he lost.
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5. Prince’s favorite meal was spaghetti and orange juice.
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6. The “Purple Rain” soundtrack spent 24 weeks at number one on Billboard.
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7. Michael Jackson’s “Bad” was supposed to be a duet with Prince.
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8. Prince was a devout Jehovah’s Witness.
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9. In 1980, when John Lennon was murdered, Prince was only a few blocks away.
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10. Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks was supposed to write “Purple Rain,” but couldn’t handle the pressure.
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11. Family and friends called Prince “Skipper” as a kid.
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12. In 1984, Prince not only had the number one movie in the country, but also the number one single & album.
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13. Despite his small stature, Prince was a remarkable basketball player.
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14. Prince formed his first band when he was 13 years old.
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15. In 2012, Prince dissed Maroon 5 for covering “Kiss.”
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16. In 2013, Prince performed at “Star Wars” director George Lucas’ wedding.
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17. The movie “Purple Rain” cost $7 million to make and grossed over $69 million.
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18. Prince scrapped his 1987 album “The Black Album” just days before its release.
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19. Prince penned The Bangles’ “Manic Monday” and Chaka Khan’s “I Feel For U.”
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20. Prince’s dad once had a band called Prince Rogers Jazz Trio.
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21. Prince sent Janelle Monae a singing telegram asking for a copy of her “The Electric Lady” album.
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Continue reading Happy Birthday, Prince: 20 Surprising Facts About The Purple One
Happy Birthday, Prince: 20 Surprising Facts About The Purple One
Today, Prince would have been 61 years old and, right on time, a new alum is being released called "Originals." The 15-track album are songs written by the artists but were first released by others like Sheila E., Apollonia 6, The Bangles and Sinéad O’Connor. The album is exclusively available on Tidal and everywhere else on June 21.
SEE ALSO: Some No Name, Pitchy R&B Singer Disrespected Keith Sweat And Gets Demolished On Twitter
The musical genius passed away on April 21, 2016 but he certainly has not left the world of pop culture. In September, Prince posthumously received a major honor from the University of Minnesota. The institution—which is based in his hometown—awarded him with an honorary degree for his contributions to the music industry and the city of Minneapolis.
The university held a ceremony where they awarded him with a Doctor of Humane Letters degree. However, the school made the decision to give the “Purple Rain” singer an honorary degree long before he passed away. “Prince emulates everything a musician should be,” Michael Kim, director of the university’s School of Music, said in a statement according to CNN. “Society pressures young people to conform to certain standards, and Prince was anything but standardized. Be yourself, know who you are and good things are going to happen.”
In addition, Prince clapped back from the grave after Trump had the audacity to his music at rallies. “The Prince Estate has never given permission to President Trump or The White House to use Prince’s songs and have requested that they cease all use immediately,” Prince’s estate said in a statement via Jeremiah Freed, also known as Dr. Funkenberry.
While Prince was certainly a political artist, he often talked about race, poverty and faith in his music. He was not associated with a particular political party, and he was also open about never voting. In 2009, Prince told Tavis Smiley about President Barack Obama, “Well, I don’t vote. I’ve don’t have nothing to do with it. I’ve got no dog in that race.”
He continued, “The reason why is that I’m one of the Jehovah’s Witnesses and we’ve never voted. That’s not to say I don’t think … President Obama is a very smart individual and he seems like he means well. Prophecy is what we all have to go by now.”
That said, fun fact, in 1990, Prince gave $2,000 to Minnesota Sen. Rudy Boschwitz, who was a Republican.
We are honoring the Purple One's legacy with other surprising facts you may not have know.