Ally Brooke has claimed there was “so much abuse” going on behind the scenes during her time in Fifth Harmony

Speaking on the debut episode of her podcast, ‘The Ally Brooke Show’, she said: “We took the entertainment industry by storm. Looking back at that, I sometimes don’t even realise how big we were. Because I guess if you’re part of something like that, you can’t even grasp because your life is moving 1,000 miles a minute. It was such a whirlwind.

“We will be in the history books. That’s pretty incredible. We had hits, such anthems and great songs. But just being honest, because I feel like having my own show calls for me to just be real and open with you guys … I hate saying this, my time in Fifth Harmony … I didn’t enjoy it. I didn’t love it. It was hard because there was so much going on. So much behind-the-scenes. So much toxicity. So much abuse. So much abuse of power. So much mental abuse. Verbal abuse. It’s horrible, and to me it’s a shame, because we were so big. I should have enjoyed myself more. I did so much for the group.”

And Ally claimed she “didn’t trust” the people around her while she was in the group, which was also comprised of Normani, Dinah Jane, and Lauren Jauregui, as well as Camila Cabello before her 2016 departure.

She added: “It was hard for many, many reasons. It was tough because I didn’t trust anybody around me. A lot of people that were in our circle.

It really damaged me for quite some time, and for quite a while. I don’t want to hang onto the negative, but I have to be honest.”

The ‘Perfect’ singer insisted she is “proud” of what she achieved in Fifth Harmony, but said the overall experience was “traumatising”.

She explained: “I’m so proud. I’m so thankful for Fifth Harmony, it changed my life … but it’s kind of the weird balance. It’s a balance of being grateful, but also being okay with the fact that things were not okay for me.

“It was traumatising, and some things I’m comfortable sharing, but some things I’m still not yet ready … I’m getting more comfortable with learning how to open up with my experiences in this industry, and in Fifth Harmony.”