Jade Thirlwall made history at this year’s BRIT Awards – more than 10 years after breaking into the music industry as part of Little Mix.
The 32-year-old singer stunned fans on the red carpet as she stepped out with her 'music manager husband', referencing the music video for her first debut single, Angel of My Dreams. She brought the Big Man along with her - who is said to represent the executives within the music industry, which some believe to be a subtle dig at Simon Cowell.
Having auditioned for The X Factor on various occasions, Jade’s third appearance on the show in 2011 saw her make it all the way to boot camp where the music mogul put her into a group alongside Perrie Edwards, Jesy Nelson and Leigh-Anne Pinnock. Together the girl band, who were mentored by Tulisa, became the first group to win the singing competition and went on to release six studio albums and secured five UK number one singles.
Following their win, Little Mix secured a recording contract with Simon’s label, Syco. However, in 2018, just days before their LM5 album was released, it was revealed that the group would be moving to the label RCA.
“Syco Music will no longer work with Modest Management and therefore any artists signed to that management company. We do, of course, wish all artists affected by this decision every future success.
“Consequently, LM5, the forthcoming Little Mix album A&R'd [promoted] and released on Syco Music, is to be serviced by RCA at the request of Syco and Simon Cowell,” a spokesperson told The Sun at the time.
The publication alleged that Little Mix confronted the X Factor boss in an email, raising the issues they had with his label. A bigger row is reported to have occurred between the label and the group’s management company Modest.
Speaking to The Sun, Simon insisted that he hadn’t fallen out with the group themselves and described them as being the “hardest working bunch of girls I've ever worked with”. He said: “As I said in my email to them, I stand by the fact they are the hardest working bunch of girls I've ever worked with. They deserve everything they've got.”
In 2020, Jade claimed that switching labels had a lasting impact on Little Mix. Speaking about the time of her career, she said that it’d had a big impact on the band and had “f***ed” them over”. As she explained why Little Mix didn’t share messages of female empowerment in their lyrics, Jade told POPline that switching labels while making their album made things difficult.
“We did a little bit but we had a switch of labels during the LM5 process and that really f***ed us over,” she said. “It was harder to put all our creativity out there in the way we would have liked. The LM5 album was very heavily on women’s rights and our experiences in the industry.”
In May 2022, Little Mix went on hiatus after 11 years together and, two years later, Jade released her debut solo single Angel Of My Dreams. As well as cracking into the UK Top 10, the single made a splash as people speculated over its meaning.
The song features lyrics including: “Sellin’ my soul to a psycho”. According to The Sun, this is in reference to Simon’s former record label, Syco. A representative for Syco told the Mirror at the time: “The entire team who worked incredibly hard behind the scenes with Little Mix to help make the group a success would continue to wish them all solo success.”
Jade also responded to the rumours and said that it explained her “journey” in the music industry. She told Beat Juice: “It’s not specifically about that. But I wanted the song to be my journey, from entering the music business to now, and what that felt like. That’s why the song feels so chaotic. The opening is like the music to that montage bit on The X Factor after you’ve won and you’re just catapulted into the industry.”
Meanwhile, Jade’s single It Girl also caused fans to speculate on the meaning behind the lyrics. Throughout the song, Jade sings about working in showbiz and in the final line she sings, “It's a no from me” – leading some to question whether it’s a reference to her time on The X Factor after she auditioned for the show on three occasions.
Taking to social media to comment on the reference, one queried: “The ‘It's a no from me’ reference in the end is a masterpiece!” Another added: “omg is that Simon Cowell shade.”
In a recent appearance on The Louis Theroux Podcast earlier this year, the IT girl singer was questioned about the lyrics. “Syco happens to be the name of Simon Cowell ’s company,” Louis said. “Coincidentally, yes,” Jade added in response. “Is that what we’re gonna say about that?,” Louis asked. “Mmm,” Jade said, adding: “I mean, it’s written on the tin, isn’t it, really?”
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