In what I personally believe to be one of the least surprising music announcements of 2018, Fifth Harmony has announced that they will be taking a hiatus to pursue solo projects.
The band released the following statement on their social media accounts, to much dismay from Harmonizers:
Unfortunately, this should come as no surprise. After former member Camila Cabello pulled a Zayn Malik and left the group last year, other members of the group have continued to branch out as well. Lauren Jauregui signed as a solo artist with Columbia Records in January, and released songs with Halsey and Steve Aoki. Normani Kordei debuted “Love Lies” with Khalid for the Love, Simon soundtrack just in time for Valentine’s Day this year. Ally Brooke not only had a guest spot on Topic’s “Perfect,” but also signed a solo deal just last week. Dinah Jane was also featured on Daddy Yankee’s track “Boom Boom” last fall.
Instead of it being sudden, the hiatus has really been a gradual process over the last several months, with each girl proving that she is fully capable of holding her own as a solo artist. It’s also not uncommon for an artist to go solo from inside a group. Not just with One Direction, but also with acts such as Nick Carter leaving the Backstreet Boys and Justin Timberlake branching out from *NSYNC.
It’s also important to note that these ladies were not originally a group, but rather thrown together back in 2012 on X-Factor. For them to have survived for as long as they did is a miracle.
The shows they have scheduled for the rest of the year will follow through as planned, but there will not be anything more beyond that for the time being. The length of the hiatus is unspecified, but if the One Direction hiatus is any indication, it will be years before the girls come back together as a group.
So, what do you guys think? Surprised or totally saw it coming? Let us know on Twitter at @hercampus or @missmeganmann!