JADE isn’t holding back when it comes to speaking up about her beliefs — and that includes calling out those who choose not to do the same about important issues.
In an interview with The Guardian, the former Little Mix star shared her belief that it’s impossible to separate pop music from social and political developments. In her case, that’s meant standing up for the LGBTQ community and advocating for Palestinian people who have been suffering for years amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, to name a couple of the causes she’s championed.
“I don’t think you can be a pop artist and cover your eyes,” she told the publication, before name-checking another star whose approach she disagrees with. “I saw Matty Healy say that he doesn’t want to be political, which I found disappointing.”
The piece comes a couple of months after The 1975 frontman made headlines for his comments during the band’s 2025 Glastonbury set. Though Healy has previously referenced politics in songs such as 2018’s “Love It If We Made It,” the rocker had told his crowd at the time, “We honestly don’t want our legacy to be one of politics … You can go out into the world and there’s loads of politics everywhere. We don’t need more politics. We need more love and friendship.”
JADE, however, thinks that Healy needs to re-examine why he’s able to make such a statement in the first place. “It’s very easy for someone who’s white and straight and very privileged to say that,” she added to the publication. “Good for you, hun!”
The now soloist is currently gearing up to release That’s Showbiz Baby!, her long-awaited debut album about the highs and lows of finding global fame on The X Factor all the way back in 2011. JADE’s brazenness concerning the issues she’s passionate about translates into the songs on the album; on one track, “IT girl,” she gets brutally honest about how restricted she felt by the music industry during her time with Little Mix.
“We all know what it’s about,” she recently told Billboard of the track. “It’s got a certain cheekiness — I’m a laugh-at-my-trauma kind of girl, and I really enjoy writing music that ruffles people’s feathers because that’s what art should do. Those are my experiences, and now that I’m on my own, there’s nothing holding me back from telling that truth.”
That’s Showbiz Baby! arrives Sept. 12.
