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At the peak of their fame, fans saw Fifth Harmony as five young women who were best friends. We now know that that was not the case. Since their breakup, former Fifth Harmony members have come clean about the drama and toxicity behind the scenes. The latest former member to speak out is Ally Brooke.

You may remember Ally Brooke (née Hernandez) as the Mexicana that Simon Cowell considered the “glue that held the group together.” Unfortunately, the pressure of being the peacemaker was no easy task for Ally.

In a recent episode of her new podcast The Ally Brooke Show, Ally Brooke revealed that she “didn’t enjoy” her time in Fifth Harmony. “We will be in the history books. That’s pretty incredible. We had hits, such anthems and great songs,” she said. “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.”

Ally Brooke continued: “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.”

This isn’t the first time former Fifth Harmony band members have come out and said that the years they spent in the mega-band were traumatic.

In October, Lauren Jauregui said that her time in Fifth Harmony was “traumatizing“. Likewise, Normani has said she was “scarred” from her time in the group–mostly from racist trolls who considered themselves fans of Camilla Cabello. Cabello fans sent Normani “Photoshopped images of her being lynched” and death threats.

Ally Brooke seems to imply that it wasn’t just the pressure of fame, but the group dynamics that were so toxic. “It was tough because I didn’t trust anybody around me, a lot of people that were in our circle,” she said. “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,”

Ultimately, Ally Brooke is grateful for the experience overall. “It changed my life,” she said. It’s a balance of being grateful but also being okay with the fact that things were not okay for me.”

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The long anticipated remake of West Side Story is one step closer to the big screen and we got our first peek during last night’s Oscars. Nearly two years after production first kicked off in 2019, we got to see Ansel Elgort and newcomer Rachel Zegler as star-crossed lovers Tony and Maria dance their way across New York City. And it was everything.

The first trailer for West Side Story danced its way to the Oscars on Sunday night.

West Side Story became a global sensation when it hit Broadway in 1957, with a book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim that made generations swoon, snap, and gasp.

The show was both dazzling and gritty, layering a Romeo and Juliet romance between Tony and Maria over a contemporary story of street gangs, racism, and violence in the shadows of rising skyscrapers. And we’ve been waiting for a modern film adaptation ever since.

Well, we got our first glimpse during last night’s Oscars Awards and it looks to be worth the wait.

In addition to Elgort and Zegler, the movie has a star-studded cast with Ariana DeBose as Maria’s best friend Anita, David Alvarez as Sharks leader Bernardo, and Mike Faist as Riff, the leader of the Jets. Rita Moreno, who famously portrayed Anita in the original 1961 film, will also be appearing in the remake as Valentina.

We had to a wait a bit longer than expected thanks to COVID.

Watch the brand-new teaser trailer for Steven Spielberg’s #WestSideStory. See the film in theaters December 10. pic.twitter.com/gtT8g90PQn

— Disney (@Disney) April 26, 2021

The 20th Century film wrapped in October 2019 and has been awaiting release after being delayed a year by COVID-19. It is now due out Dec. 10.

“This has been a journey without precedence: a joyful, stunning, moving, endlessly surprising encounter with the story and score of one of the world’s greatest musicals,” Spielberg wrote in a letter to audiences upon wrapping the film. “We filmed West Side Story all over New York, Flatbush to Fort Tryon Park. The city lent us its beauty and its energy, and we drew deeply upon its grand multicultural, multifaceted spirit.”

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