Camila Cabello opens up on why she left Fifth Harmony

Camila Cabello is opening up about leaving Fifth Harmony. The "Havana" singer says she needed to explore her individuality as an artist, but other members of the girl group shunned her and stopped her from writing lyrics for Fifth Harmony songs after she collaborated in late 2015 with Shawn Mendes. 

Cabello told the New York Times that she wanted to stay in the group while she was working on her solo album, but the rest of the group shut her out. She said of making her own music, "I just wanted to do that and it did not work."

Cabello said that later, after she continued to work with other producers, like Diplo, Cashmere Cat and Benny Blanco, the group gave her an ultimatum. 

"It became clear that it was not possible to do solo stuff and be in the group at the same time," she said. Cabello told the Times, "If anyone wants to explore their individuality, it's not right for people to tell you no."

Cabello teared up talking to the Times about when Fifth Harmony publicly taunted her at the MTV VMAs. As they opened their performance, a fifth silhouette of a woman fell backward as the four began to sing. 

Cabello said she had been watching the VMAs with her mom. 

It definitely hurt my feelings," she said. "I wasn't expecting it, I wasn't prepared for it — especially because at that point I'd moved on from it. I was just like, 'What? Why?'" She called the stunt "petty." 

Cabello has been very successful with her solo career. "Havana" led Billboard's pop radio chart longer than any other song by a solo female artist in the past five years, reports the Times.