Mel B appears in distressing domestic violence video for Women’s Aid after abusive relationship

Spice Girl Mel B has appeared in a video raising awareness about domestic violence against women, almost three years on from leaving her own abusive relationship.

The music video called Love Should Not Hurt is made in collaboration with classical composer Fabio D’Andrea and the charity Women’s Aid, The Sun reports.

The short piece was inspired by Mel’s conversations with survivors of domestic abuse and the impact of lockdown on women living with an abusive partner during Covid.

The 45-year-old pop star told the newspaper: “I have a responsibility to make sure these situations are portrayed as realistically as possible.

“I looked at all the emails I’ve received from women who have read my book and handpicked some to help me with the acting.

“Whether it be the spitting or the strangulation, these are things that actually happen. They are not just my story — they are all these women’s stories.

“I came out of making that video with bruises because I wanted it to be an honest representation of what we have all gone through.

“There is a bedroom scene where I am attacked, it was really important to make that real.”

She claims ex-husband and film producer Stephen Belafonte, who kept his criminal record secret from her, began abusing her on their wedding night in 2007 and continued a decade-long “reign of terror”.

She said 45-year-old Belafonte, a convicted domestic abuser, called her ugly, a s**t, fat, stupid, a b***ch, worthless, drunk and pathetic during that time.

She began divorce proceeding in 2018 and, in August that year, they reached a settlement which involved the abuse charges being dropped.

The couple have a nine-year-old daughter, Madison.

Mel also confirmed she is now in a new relationship with a man who is “different to anyone I’ve ever been in a relationship with before”.

She said: “I honestly thought being in a romantic ­relationship again would be impossible because you get overloaded with past experiences.

“Because I’m riddled with so many trauma triggers, I couldn’t be hugged or touched for a good year.

"If someone came too close to me my hairs would stand on end, even in regular, everyday life.

“But there is a way out of it. It takes somebody who’s very kind, understanding and patient to help you out of that unwanted cycle you fear going back into.

"You can have a loving, caring relationship. It just takes a lot of time and a lot of trust.”

Belafonte denied the allegations at the time and his legal team called them “outrageous and unfounded”.

They said: "When the degree to which Ms Brown has gone to create a false depiction of her marriage to Mr Belafonte is uncovered, real victims and survivors of domestic violence will be understandably offended, angry and upset.”

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