Mel B Shares Why She Took Time Away from Judging ‘America’s Got Talent’
Photo by: Todd Owyoung/NBC Reading Time: 2 minutes
America’s Got Talent judge Mel B recently sat down to chat with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show. During their conversation, the Spice Girls star talked about why she stepped away from the AGT judging table, and why she finally felt comfortable returning for Fantasy League.
Mel B Shares Why She Left America’s Got Talent
Mel B sat at the AGT judging table from Season 8 to Season 13, as well as the first season of AGT: The Champions. This year, she returned to judge AGT: Fantasy League, putting together her own dream team against the other three judges (Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum, and Simon Cowell).
“I did do America’s Got Talent for seven years. And then I took a five, six year break,” Mel shared. “I went home and lived with my mother in my early 40s with my three kids, because I’d gone through like a 10-year, very abusive marriage.”
The singer wrote a book about her experience called Brutally Honest. She said she “needed to take a bit of time out and recoup,” explaining that she needed to “heal.” Mel said “we’re living in an epidemic” of domestic violence.
“So I’m back now with no secrets to hide,” Mel said of her return to AGT. “I’m on such a good wave, because I’m not hiding behind the desk anymore. I know what I’m going home to. It’s love and my kids, and I feel very safe with my two Rottweilers and my future husband. And I’m just happy, finally.”
The Singer Is a Member of the Order of the British Empire
In 2022, Mel was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in recognition of her work to raise awareness about domestic violence. The singer has accused her ex-husband Stephen Belafonte of abusing her during their marriage.
“The MBE arrives in this envelope that gets chauffeur-driven to your house, and the chauffeur has to hand the envelope to you,” Mel explained. “But I wasn’t in, so my mum was in … So my mum calls me, and she goes, ‘Oh my God, Your Royal Highness. There’s a note here, and it says royalty. What have you done?!'”
As part of the privileges that come with becoming an MBE, Mel will be able to get married at St. Paul’s Cathedral, where Princess Diana got married. The star is currently engaged to hair stylist Rory McPhee. Mel said she should get a date for the wedding “pretty soon.”
