Dinah Jane found going solo "kind of scary".
The 21-year-old singer’s released her debut solo single, ‘Bottled Up’ – which features Marc E. Bassy and Ty Dolla $ign – in September, six months after her group Fifth Harmony went on hiatus, and she was worried about living up to people’s expectations with the track.
She said: "It was kind of scary at first.
"I feel like people expect a lot from me. I feel like people always had an idea of who ‘Dinah Jane’ was, but being that this was my first [single] … I want you to get familiar with where I’ve come from."
And the singer admitted it took time to adjust to not having the rest of the band with her.
Speaking on the ‘Billboard Pop Shop’ podcast, she said: "I wish that was the attitude in the beginning – ‘oh yeah, I’m ready!’ – but it wasn’t. Just ’cause I was so used to my girls, their company, we always went everywhere together."
But the former ‘X Factor’ contestant has found it easier to write songs without the rest of the group.
She explained: "[I don’t] have to think about other people’s opinions and let that interfere with what I’m feeling. And I’m sure [the rest of Fifth Harmony] all feel the same way."
When she was working on the track with Bassy, Dinah Jane was "afraid and very timid" but her collaborator gave her lots of encouragement.
She recalled he told her: "No, no, no. Get your hands on this record because it’s something special. It has to come from you, of what you feel and what you see."
The "really personal" song was originally a ballad but it got sped up and Dinah Jane was able to produce the track she really wanted.
She said: "I didn’t let fear get in the way of the subject or let people think this is far off from who I am.
"I just wanted to step into me being a woman as well. Not being afraid to talk about things that actually are real. There [were] no barriers when I wrote this one with him…
"I know so many friends and family that are really close and so dear to me that have trouble expressing how they feel, so they turn to these substances to actually get their emotions out."
Dinah Jane’s scary solo career
