Normani Breaks Silence on Feeling “Frustrated” by Her Debut Solo Album Rollout

Normani opened up about her frustration with the delay of her debut album Dopamine, revealing she experienced heartbreak during the rollout process.The Fifth Harmony alum’s album was severely delayed due to her parents’ health complications in 2020 and 2021.During a Q&A at the Grammy Museum on August 3, Normani confirmed a new “healing” musical era is coming, with unreleased Dopamine tracks potentially included in her upcoming project.It’s been two years since Normani dropped her album, Dopamine, and she’s officially opening up about her “frustration” surrounding the highly anticipated rollout.During a Q&A with her manager, Lydia Asrat, and music journalist Tomás Mier at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles on Monday, August 3, the Fifth Harmony alum got candid about her delayed solo debut, which she claimed was a “labor of love.”“If I’m being transparent, I know that you guys were frustrated. Imagine that times 10 for me,” she shared. “I feel like there was such heartbreak and heartache that I feel like I went through, just in terms of the process of having all these things lined up and aspirations…things we talked about and aiming towards that didn’t come into fruition.”Normani, who signed to RCA Records after wrapping the last Fifth Harmony record with Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, and Dinah Jane in 2017, was on track to become pop music’s next big star. Her solo career initially gained momentum after releasing collabs like “Love Lies” with Khalid and “Dancing With a Stranger” with Sam Smith, and she even opened for Ariana Grande on the Sweetener World Tour in 2019.Aside from label complications, which she opened up about during an interview with The Cut, Normani’s debut album was severely delayed due to health complications with her parents. In 2020, her mom was diagnosed with breast cancer for a second time after being in remission for 19 years. Once she completed chemotherapy the following year, the “Wild Side” singer’s dad was also diagnosed with prostate cancer.Add Cosmopolitan as a preferred source in your Google search results.Use your Google account to add this to your settings.“You don’t even know the half of it. I was just like, ‘Fuck all of this,’” she told the outlet, through tears, of the public’s demand for more music when she and her family were silently suffering. She later added, “I needed to be at home, with my family…My mom was like, ‘I’m still going to be here the day you put that body of work out. I’ll be here at the end.’ And I held onto that.”Rebecca Sapp//Getty ImagesDuring her chat at the Grammy Museum, Normani sympathized with fans, who supported her solo endeavors since she first dropped “Motivation,” as they hyped her up and anticipated her debut album.“I think, for me, in real time, I was navigating that, and then on top of already feeling that, feeling like…I don’t want to say that I let you guys down, in a sense, but you deserve so much more,” she shared.Normani and Lydia confirmed that a new “healing” musical era is coming, describing it as “Superwoman” vibes. They added that several unreleased tracks that didn’t make Dopamine will be considered for the upcoming project.All that to say: We’re already completely seated for more Normani music!