Jamelia has spoken out about her abusive ex-boyfriend in a bid to support Avon’s Shine Light and Speak Out Against Domestic Violence campaign. And, while she has revealed that "he could've killed me", she admits that she bears no grudges today.
“I’ll never regret leaving my ex, but the strange thing now is he and I are now friends. I’ve 100% forgiven him"
The songstress, who joined the Loose Woman panel last week, explained that, in order for herself to be happy today, she has chosen to forgive the man who battered and emotionally abused her for three years.
“I’ll never regret leaving my ex, but the strange thing now is he and I are now friends. I’ve 100% forgiven him.
"I think he was stupid and cowardly for making me suffer, but if I was to hold a grudge against him for the rest of my life then I wouldn’t be able to move on with my life and I’m so happy right now.”
The Superstar singer, who has asked that the media do not name the ex (whom she dated over ten years ago), explained: “I was only 18 when the abuse started. It a very successful time for me.
“I would be going to an awards ceremony and performing on Top Of The Pops, then I would be going home and getting beaten up."
"Then the next day I’d have an interview. If I had a split lip or a bruise I could conceal it with make-up or an excuse.
“I could smile and be seemingly upbeat, even though I’d be beaten to the ground only hours earlier.
"I felt so alone. I cut myself off from my family and my friends.”
Jamelia said she had hoped, wrongly, that having a baby would change him – but her daughter Teja did give her the courage to leave.
“He could’ve killed me, of course. The scariest thing was leaving. The psychological fear is much worse than being hit.
“When I left I thought ‘Oh no, he’s definitely going to get me back for this’ and that didn’t happen. He realised that impact he’d had. The strength I had came from my daughter.
"There was no way on Earth there was I going to let this become the norm for my baby.”
It's always hard to talk about something so awful and we commend Jamelia for being brave to open up about her past experiences in a bid to Speak Out Against Violence.