Rich list of breakaway bandmates – from Robbie Williams to Beyonce as Jesy Nelson deepens rift with Little Mix

WHEN it comes to pop groups, there’s always one member who eventually quits, devastating their fans around the world.

Not only does their departure often cause a rift with their former bandmates, but it can lead to a hugely successful solo career – and a ballooning bank balance to match.

Jesy Nelson quit Little Mix in December to focus on her mental health struggles – and along with bandmates Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Jade Thirlwall and Perrie Edwards, they all vowed to stay close and supportive.

But now, as she’s set to release strikingly similar music to her former band,  insiders are predicting that the girls – who are communicating through lawyers – will be left feuding even more.

As Jesy looks poised to match the success of Little Mix, we take a look at the other stars who've bid farewell to their bands – and how it's worked out for both sides.

Robbie Williams – £165m

Robbie Williams devastated Take That fans when he left in 1995 – to the point that phone lines were open for those who needed to be consoled.

But he is perhaps the most successful of the breakaways, with a fortune of £165m. 

Gary Barlow, the second richest of the group, is worth less than half of that at £80m, despite having written the majority of the band’s songs.

Mark Owen is the third richest, but worth much less at £29m.

Surprisingly, as he quit the band in 2014, Jason Orange is worth a lot more than Howard Donald, who’s still in Take That.

Jason is worth £21.7m and Howard is worth £18m.

Phil Collins – £120m

Genesis – made up of Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Steve Hackett, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks – formed in 1967.

However, they didn’t have their first major hit until Follow You Follow Me in 1978, after Steve and Peter had left, and Phil was left doing the vocals and drums instead of Peter.

Their next five albums were all successful, but, in 1996, Phil left Genesis to focus on solo work, which included writing songs for Disney’s Tarzan for which he received an Oscar for Best Original Song for You'll Be in My Heart.

Phil – whose best-known song is In The Air Tonight – is now worth a massive £120m.

Meanwhile, Mark is worth £30m, and Tony is worth £43m.

And, though he didn’t earn nearly as much as Phil, Peter managed to get himself a whopping £68.6m through his solo career – with hits like Sledgehammer.

Annie Lennox – £43.3m

Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart created synth-pop duo Eurythmics in the 80s, and had many hits together including Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).

Although they never officially disbanded, Annie made a fairly clear break from Dave in 1990, and embarked on a solo career.

She went on to top up her earnings to £43.3m, while Dave is still worth a respectable £32.5m.

Zayn Malik – £36m

Directioners were absolutely heartbroken when Zayn Malik quit One Direction in 2015 to go solo, at the height of the boy band’s fame.

Despite being the first one of the five boys to make solo music, he unfortunately is the least well-off with £36m in the bank.

Meanwhile, it may come as no surprise that Harry Styles is the richest with £63m in the bank, while Niall Horan has £50.5m and Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson both have £44m 

Geri Horner – £32m

Spice Girls were the biggest girl band of all time, achieving world domination with just their first single, Wannabe, in 1996.

Just two years later, Geri Horner nee Halliwell sent shockwaves around the world when she abruptly announced she was quitting – and went on to launch a solo career, releasing Look At Me soon after.

Geri is now worth £32m, but it’s Victoria Beckham who tops the band’s rich list, with earnings of £240m, thanks to creating Brand Beckham with her husband, David Beckham.

Behind Geri is Mel C, who’s worth £27m thanks to her solo music and West End musical appearances.

Emma Bunton is worth £21m, thanks to her Heart FM presenting and music.

Sadly, for Mel B, although she reportedly made “between $220,000 and $250,000 a month” from her £1.3m America's Got Talent deal, it has been claimed she blew her £37.9m Spice Girls fortune.

Beyonce – £361m

While there have been many line-ups of Destiny’s Child, the two constant members were Beyonce Knowles and Kelly Rowland – who had been performing in the group since they were nine years old in the ‘90s.

But in 2004, after five hit albums together, Beyonce, Kelly and Michelle Williams they decided to part ways – saying their "destinies had been fulfilled".

Beyonce embarked on a solo career that turned her into one of the biggest superstars in the world.

She’s now worth a whopping £361m.

Meanwhile, Kelly is worth £8.6m, despite a solo career and judging stint on X Factor, and , who is a successful gospel singer, is worth £7.2m.

Maybe Jesy will end up outshining the rest of the Little Mix girls like plenty before her.

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