UPDATE: Aug. 29 ― Fifth Harmony has opened up about the VMAs performance that got everyone talking.
During an appearance on “Good Morning America” Tuesday, group member Ally Brooke explained, “We get asked all the time if we’re getting a fifth member, and we wanted to show the world, in an artistic way, hey — we are Fifth Harmony.”
“It was such a monumental moment for us,” Brooke added.
PREVIOUSLY:
Fifth Harmony is tired of your Camila Cabello questions.
Not long after the pop group dodged a question from Charlamagne tha God about their departed bandmate on the MTV Video Music Awards red carpet, the “Down” singers made quite the statement onstage.
At the beginning of the group’s performance of “Angel” and “Down,” five silhouettes can be seen onstage, until the middle silhouette is thrown back and out of sight.
Um. Wow.
It was a pretty clear statement that there are just four members in this group.
On the red carpet, Charlamagne had asked the singers — who were up for Best Pop Video for “Down,” which they won — if they’d need to give a statue to Cabello as well. Um, Cabello wasn’t involved with that song.
Luckily, Normani Kordei was able to recover swiftly from the slight, saying, “If we win, we’d give [it] to our choreographer.”
Clearly, they didn’t let the awkwardness affect their performance.
After Cabello’s sudden departure from the group in December 2016, relations between the “Havana” singer and her former bandmates have been, well, a little tense.
Fifth Harmony members Lauren Jauregui and Kordei recently told USA Today that the split was similar to a celebrity divorce.
“It really was, it was just like that. All of the drama, all of the hype,” Jauregui said. “But you know what? We’re so happy, and we moved forward, and we’re in a good place, and we hope she’s in a good place, and that’s really what matters.”
She later said, “We’re all artists — we’re not here for stupid back-and-forth drama,” but perhaps the group couldn’t resist just a little more shade.
Watch the full performance below.