JADE joins Hits Radio for an exclusive chat where she reveals more details about her album
She's been working with her boyfriend Jordan
Last updated 18th Mar 2025
BRIT Award-winner JADE joined Fleur East, James and Matt on Hits Radio Breakfast to talk about her brand new song 'FUFN', her spectacular BRIT Awards performance with THAT trapdoor, and whether her Rizzle Kicks boyfriend Jordan Stephens features on her first solo album.
JADE has now released several solo songs, including 'Angel of My Dreams', which she performed at The BRIT Awards 2025, and picked up Pop Act. While she's enjoying the success of being a solo artist, we wanted to know if she has plans to work with her boyfriend - and it turns out she already has!
Does Jordan Stephens feature on JADE's album?
Telling Fleur and the team all about her upcoming album, JADE explained they haven't done a full 'Nelly and Kelly' collaboration, but she would be up for it if "the vibe was right".
"He's helped me a little bit with like stuff on the album, he's got a couple of writing credits," she told us. "I've been on his album, the Rizzle Kicks album, doing some BV's and stuff like that.
"I would definitely... I would definitely collaborate with him."
JADE went on to reveal they were actually in the studio together yesterday, as she was finishing off her album. "I want to do this anyways... just like an interlude in the album," she explained.
"So I brought him in because he's got such a good talking voice, and he just says so many lovely things. I was with the producer Starsmith and he came and he was like, "I've written a love poem," and I was like "OK", and then he just started reading it out! It so lovely. He's just got such a way with words, you know, he's a great poet."
The singer then confirmed that her boyfriend is on her album, admitting: "So yeah, he probably will... Is that an exclusive? So he IS on the album, yeah!"
The 'FUFN' singer also revealed that the pair have even written a song together about dream cheating! JADE explained how she felt waking up from a dream and needing time to calm down.
"The concept's come from me, having a nightmare about Jordan cheating on me, and then I woke up in the morning, I was fuming with him. I just needed a minute to get myself together, and be like ‘babe that wasn't real’.
"That's a concept for a song (dream cheating) that I wrote with Jordan."
When will JADE release her debut solo album?
Every since Little Mix started their hiatus back in 2022, and JADE released her debut solo hit 'Angel of My Dreams', fans have been asking when her debut solo album will be released. Cutting straight to the chase, Matt asked JADE when it will be released, and she didn't shy away from giving us some further details.
Having previously told us that she has been finishing off her album, she told the team that there will be an announcement about her album very soon.
"The album is coming out... You know I hate saying soon, but there will be an announcement very....Quickly off the back of this song (‘FUFN’)," JADE explained.
When Fleur asked her about a time scale of two to five weeks, she confirmed: "100%, the announcement is yeah!"
How to listen to the Fleur East, James and Matt on Hits Radio
You can listen to Fleur East, James and Matt on the national Hits Radio Breakfast Show every week day between 6am and 10am. You can also catch Fleur, James and Matt on Saturdays across Hits Radio in England between 9am and midday.
Take a look through JADE's amazing career from The X Factor to solo BRIT Award-winner:
2008 - Jade's first audition on The X Factor
Jade first auditioned on The X Factor back in 2008 at the age of just 15. Singing Whitney Houston's song 'Where Do Broken Hearts Go', the Geordie girl impressed Louis Walsh, Cheryl Tweedy and Simon Cowell enough to be sent through to the bootcamp stage, but unfortunately she didn't progress any further.
2010 - Jade auditioned on The X Factor for a second time
Undeterred, Jade auditioned on The X Factor again, but once again it wasn't to be. Matt Cardle won the competition that year, with One Direction being runners up.
2011 - Jade won The X Factor as part of Little Mix
It was third time lucky for Jade as she won The X Factor as part of Little Mix. It wasn't an easy ride though as she failed the first bootcamp challenge to get through to the girls category. Luckily for Jade, she was brought back as part of a three-piece group along with Leigh-Anne Pinnock, with Perrie Edwards and Jesy Nelson in another group. Despite both groups being eliminated from the competition, it was decided that the four girls would be brought back as a group, who went on to win the competition. And as they say, the rest is history.
2017 - Little Mix win their first BRIT Award
'Shout Out to My Ex' won the girls their first BRIT Award. The award was for British Single of the Year and reached Number 1 in the UK, it was co-written by Jade along with the rest of the group and a team of songwriters.
2019 - Little Mix win another BRIT Awards
Despite not winning British Group, Little Mix took home the BRIT Award for British Video of the Year, for their single 'Woman Like Me' featuring Nicki Minaj. This was also the year when it was revealed that Jade had been signed to Sony/ATV via joint venture TwentySeven, as a published songwriter along with Leigh-Anne Pinnock.
2019 - Jade Thirlwall appeared on RuPaul's Drag Race UK
The singer appeared as a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race UK, in the episode Girl Group Battle Royale.
2019 - Jade opened a nightclub
Jade Thirlwall opened a cocktail bar in South Shields called Red Door. In 2020, the name was changed to Arbeia, and that year she also opened a nightclub called Industry next door to her cocktail bar, as well as collaborating with clothing brand Skinnydip London.
2019 - Jade Thirlwall climbed Mount Kilimanjaro
2019 was a busy year for Jade. The singer, along with her Little Mix bandmate Leigh-Anne, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro to raise funds for Comic Relief's Red Nose Day.
2021 - Little Mix get their own waxworks
To mark the band's 10th anniversary, Madame Tussauds unveiled waxworks of Little Mix, including former member Jesy Nelson.
Working with Ellesse, Jade also became the new face of the Italian sportswear brand, as well as launching her own Autumn/Winter collection.
In 2021, the singer also launched her own eyeshadow palette with Beauty Bay. The palette was inspired by Jade's love for crystals, spirituality and astrology.
2021 - Jade appeared on The Great Stand Up to Cancer Bake Off
Appearing on The Great Stand Up to Cancer Bake Off for charity, Jade was crowned the winner of her episode. The singer wowed Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith with her recreation of one of the group's concerts in front of thousands of biscuit fans.
Jade also won the Allyship award at the Gay Times Honours.
2022 - Little Mix announce their hiatus
Following the departure of Jesy Nelson, Little Mix announced that they were taking a break from the group after they'd finished their 'Confetti Tour', which took place in 2022. They wrote: 'We are not splitting up - Little Mix are here to stay 💫 We have plans for more music, tours and performances in the future. We've made so many incredible memories with you all, and we can't wait to make so many more.'
2023 - Jade teases work on solo music
Following the announcement that Jade had signed a solo deal with RCA Records in March 2022, she stayed pretty quiet on the solo music front. That was, however, until November 2023, when she shared an Instagram post showing her behind the mic. The post included an image of Jade wearing headphones in front of a recording microphone, hinting to fans that she has been working away on her solo music.
2024 - Jade posts more solo music teases
Jade got her fans whipped into a frenzy once again in May 2024, sharing a series of photos on the grid - including one of herself in a recording studio with some chunky headphones on alongside the caption: 'I'm working laaaaate cos I'm a singer,' quoting the smash hit 'Espresso' by Sabrina Carpenter. Many fans took to the comments to share their excitement - including former bandmate and BFF Leigh-Anne, who wrote: 'Drop the album already.'
2024 - 'Angel Of My Dreams' is released
Jade released her incredible tune 'Angel Of My Dreams' on Friday 19th July 2024, with a first official play on-air the previous evening. The sensational video came out on the Friday, with Jade using it to show her "love/hate relationship with the music industry". Fans were utterly obsessed from the get-go, with many flooding the comments section of her YouTube premiere with words of praise and encouragement. It's safe to say it's a hit!
2024 - Jade gifts fans with 'Midnight Cowboy'
On 22nd September, Jade teased that she was set to release another bop - featuring a very familiar voice! The singer shared a teaser video for 'Midnight Cowboy', not only featuring a snippet of the new song, but also Ncuti Gawta, who fans know from his starring roles in titles such as Sex Education, Doctor Who and Barbie. Shortly after the teaser clip was shared, Jade wrote: 'I didn't want you all to have to wait so long for music again 💙MIDNIGHT COWBOY💙 is a gift from me to you until my next single drops 🌟'. (sic)
With her also adding: 'oh and there's a visualiser out at 10am BST too ⛲️' (sic), it was then on 25th September that fans were gifted with the full track, along with the visualiser video on YouTube. As well as reportedly working with RAYE on writing the song, Ncuti's voice can be heard in the opening of the track.
2025 - Jade releases 'IT Girl'
Jade released her first single of the year on Friday 10th January. It is another banger called 'IT Girl', and Jade described it as the "little sister" of 'Angel of My Dreams'.
2025 - Wins her first solo BRIT Award
In January 2025, it was revealed Jade was up for two awards at the BRIT Awards 2025 with Mastercard. Her debut single 'Angel Of My Dreams' was nominated for Song of the Year, while Jade herself was up for Pop Act! At the event on 1st March, Jade was announced as the winner of Pop Act, beating tough competition from Charli XCX, Dua Lipa, Lola Young and Myles Smith. While Song of the Year went to Charli XCX for 'Guess' featuring Billie Eilish.
At the event, Jade also put on a memorable performance of her debut solo 'Angel Of My Dreams'.
2025 - Jade releases 'FUFN'
Released on 14th March 2025, Jade's song 'FUFN' is all about channelling female rage. She told us in an interview: "I think for me this one is my sort of 'all guns blazing', big pop moment. 'FUFN' is about like channelling female rage and just letting someone have it. You know when you're in an argument and you feel like it's the worst thing ever in the moment? Hoping that the next day it will all blow over, it will be fine. Which I think is very relatable."
2025 - Jade performs at Glastonbury
In March 2025, Jade was announced as part of the upcoming Glastonbury Festival line-up. She performed on Saturday 28th on the Woodsies Stage, on the same day as Charli XCX, RAYE and Neil Young.
2025 - Jade releases debut solo album
Jade released her debut solo album 'That's Showbiz Baby!' on 12th September 2025 ahead of her solo tour. The album features 14 songs including her amazing debut solo hit 'Angel of My Dreams'.
2025: Jade goes on her UK and Ireland tour
Following the release of her debut album, JADE went on her UK and Ireland tour. The tour started in Dublin on 7th October, before she travelled across the UK, ending in Newcastle on 23rd October.
2025: Awarded the Freedom of the Borough
It was announced in October 2025 that JADE will receive the Freedom of the Borough from South Tyneside Council! Council leader Tracey Dixon said she "could not be more deserving of the marvellous tribute," adding that she was nominated due to "her outstanding contribution as a cultural ambassador and her ongoing commitment to South Tyneside." Councillor David Francis praised how she'd used her "platform to speak out and amplify the voices of the marginalised." She'll receive the award at a future point.
2025: JADE received Harpers Bazaar Award
Fellow Geordie Cheryl presented JADE with her Musician of the Year Award, at the Harpers Bazaar Women of the Year Awards 2025. Speaking about JADE, Cheryl said: "She and I have a lot in common: we're both from the north-east of England and we both grew up determined to follow our dreams of making it in the world of pop music.
"It takes a lot of courage to audition for a talent show, not least one that's going to be broadcast on national television, where people will be following your every move. It takes energy and passion to thrive as part of a chart-topping, record-smashing girl band. But it takes even more bravery to go it alone as a musician, and the singer I'm about to welcome on this stage has done exactly that."
2025: JADE performs at Hits Radio Live Birmingham
JADE joined the huge line-up at Hits Radio Live Birmingham on 21st November 2025. The singer performed her huge songs 'FUFN', 'Plastic Box', and 'Fantasy', ending with her debut solo hit 'Angel of My Dreams'.
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