Profile Text
Pinnock in 2013, photo by Prphotos
Place of Birth: High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England, U.K.
Date of Birth: 4 October, 1991
Ethnicity: African-Caribbean [Jamaican, Barbadian], some English
Leigh-Anne Pinnock, also known simply as Leigh-Anne, is a British singer, songwriter, actress, and fashion blogger. She was a member of girl group Little Mix, along with Perrie Edwards , Jesy Nelson , and Jade Thirlwall . She co-starred in the film Boxing Day (2021).
She is the daughter of Deborah Thornhill, a history teacher, and John Pinnock, a champion boxer. Leigh-Anne is married to professional footballer Andre Gray, with whom she has two children.
She has stated :
That is such a personal thing, isn’t it: ‘What do you identify as?’… I do identify as black. I have two mixed-race parents… So I have always identified as black growing up. I feel like I was identified as black in the public eye as well. The public would call me the ‘black girl’ in Little Mix and that’s what I was and I owned it, but it is such a personal thing to say… I get scared to offend people as a mixed-race person [saying] that I identify as black because I know how bad colourism is and how dark-skinned people are not represented enough in the media at all.
That is such a personal thing, isn’t it: ‘What do you identify as?’… I do identify as black. I have two mixed-race parents… So I have always identified as black growing up. I feel like I was identified as black in the public eye as well. The public would call me the ‘black girl’ in Little Mix and that’s what I was and I owned it, but it is such a personal thing to say… I get scared to offend people as a mixed-race person [saying] that I identify as black because I know how bad colourism is and how dark-skinned people are not represented enough in the media at all.
It appears that Leigh-Anne’s paternal grandparents are black, though likely also have white ancestry. Her maternal grandfather was black, and her maternal grandmother was white. A picture of Leigh-Anne with her mother can be seen here .
A picture of her maternal grandparents can be seen here .
Leigh-Anne’s maternal grandfather was named Leslie J. Thornhill.
Leigh-Anne’s maternal grandmother is named Valerie Faulkner.
Sources: https://www.theguardian.com
Family background of Leigh-Anne Pinnock – http://www.allaboutlittlemix.com