The Spotlight on Larell: Hip Hop Male Artist with a Mission

Jade has spoken to NME about the latest developments on her “brave and bold” second album, her ambition to headline Reading & Leeds, and whether she could return to Glastonbury next year.

Returning to her home region of South Shields, the former Little Mix singer turned solo star caught up with NME on the red carpet at the Mercury Prize in Newcastle. Her debut album ‘That’s Showbiz Baby!’ had been shortlisted alongside releases from Suede, Kojey Radical, Nia Archives and Florence & The Machine, before ultimately losing out to Raye’s ‘This Music May Contain Hope’.

When asked what she believes makes an exceptional album, Jade replied: “Authenticity, being bold and ballsy, just doing what you want to do and not necessarily pandering to what you think the masses want to hear.”

Before taking to the stage for a major performance of ‘Angel Of My Dreams’, Jade also shared how excited she was to be nominated and perform at the ceremony. “I’m buzzing off me boobs, I’m so excited,” she said. “I’m a little overwhelmed to be honest, there’s a lot going on right now, but I’m very happy to be here.”

It has been a busy year for Jade, and our previous encounter with the singer was at Reading Festival, where she delivered a huge performance and attracted one of the weekend’s biggest crowds.

“It was amazing,” she recalled. “I’d never played Reading before, it was my first time and I think as a pop artist you’re always a little apprehensive of how the crowd is going to react – especially at Reading. But they were amazing, they were well up for it. It was one of my favourite festivals that I’ve done this year and one ticked off the bucketlist.”

Could she eventually join the likes of Charli XCX and Raye as one of the next generation of pop stars to headline Reading & Leeds?

“I mean I’d love to, I’d absolutely love to,” she replied. “That’s definitely a dream of mine to headline more festivals, and there are no better ones that Reading, Leeds and Glastonbury.”

When asked whether she might return to Worthy Farm in 2027, she said: “Fingers crossed, we’ll see. It was so special there last year, and it was probably one of the best shows of my life. It was so, so special. I’d love to re-live it and do it again.”

Fans could potentially have a new Jade album to look forward to by next summer, with the singer confirming that she has been “busy writing” alongside producer and collaborator Mike Sabbath.

“We’ve been doing a lot over the summer in between the little breaks and the festival run,” Jade told NME. “I’ve been getting in the studio with him, writing what we can, and I’m going to LA in a couple of weeks to start solidifying what this is going to sound like. It’s still kind of early stages, but I love writing process and it’s even better to do it with mates and people who you feel really comfortable with.”

So, what direction is her second album taking at this stage?

“I can’t say too much without giving it away,” she explained, “but it’s just very honest again about my experiences this year, whatever I’ve been going through and still brave, bold and a bit of a pop punch to the face.”

Jade performs at the 2026 Mercury Prize in Newcastle (Photo by JMEnternational/Getty Images)

Jade currently has several European dates scheduled for 2027. Visit here for tickets and further information.