Jessie J isn’t here to answer boring questions about Channing Tatum
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- Hollie Richardson
- Published
Jessie J’s This Morning interview with Ben Shephard was a masterclass in how to shutdown questions about your private life.
Jessie J is an award-winning, globally recognised singer and songwriter, with five successful albums under her belt. She has sold over 20 million singles and 3 million albums worldwide. And, after appearing as a mentor and judge on two seasons of The Voice, she’s also carved a career in TV.
(Side note: can you believe it’s been TEN years since Price Tag was released? I can’t even…)
And yet, the star has faced constant criticism from fans after her relationship with actor Channing Tatum was confirmed in 2018. Following the news, many fan reactions have been, in a word: disgusting.
After Tatum shared a photo of his partner, which was captioned with a sweet message praising her, fans had the audacity to leave negative comments about J. One predictably lazy and sexist criticism was that J is a “copycat” of Tatum’s ex Jenna Dewon - literally just because they both have brown hair and dark eyes.
“What are you doing with her?” wrote one.
“OK, so he left Jenna [Dewan] for someone who looks like Jenna,” added another.
Speaking about the relationship in a recent interview with The Times, J revealed the pressure she has felt ever since rumours of the romance started to circulate.
“Chan and I got photographed before our relationship was even a thing and that created such pressure,” she said. “We’ve needed time to get to know each other. We’ve just had our first holiday together, which was wonderful, but that’s all I’m saying.”
And that really was all she wanted to say on the matter. After the backlash that she has endured just for being in the relationship, it’s hardly surprising that she wants to keep things private.
But that didn’t stop This Morning presenter Ben Shephard from probing her about Tatum during an interview on Friday (26 July). Promoting The Voice Kids UK final, J was there to discuss her career – not her private relationship.
“A few months ago we had a big performance here, and the Magic Mike lot turned up,” he said. “I’ve not seen this Jessie – [co-presenter] Jenni [Falconer]’s been invited. You obviously got to see this with Mike himself.”
“I did,” confirmed J.
“That’s a performance that seems to be quite…” continued Shephard.
“The opposite of The Voice Kids. I think let’s stay focused on The Voice Kids,” interjected J.
Shephard then continued to chat to with Falconer about Magic Mike, before J quickly brought the conversation back to The Voice Kids. Shephard looked awkward, and rightly so.
It was a masterclass by J in how to shut down any conversations about your private life that you do not want – or have – to endure on live television.
Images: Getty