JADE Reflects on Her X Factor Journey: “I Don’t Know Anyone from the Show Who Didn’t Struggle with Mental Health Issues”

Jade’s Experience on X Factor

Jade recalled her time on X Factor, mentioning that she didn’t know anyone who exited the show without “some mental health issues.”

The singer-songwriter participated in a talent search in 2011 and became a member of the girl group Little Mix when she was 18. She shared this experience in a recent interview with the magazine Independent.

Challenges Faced by Contestants

The “Angel Of My Dreams” singer revealed that her time on X Factor included coping with “pretty shitty” situations, such as sharing bunk beds with other female contestants, regardless of their ages.

“Even at 18, I knew there were people out there with mental illness that were keeping everyone up at night,” she stated. “I don’t know if there was any security near the house at all. It’s scary to think about now, but at the time I was too young to realize it.”

Her remarks come as many in the entertainment industry have advocated for improved protections for young artists following the passing of One Direction star Liam Payne, who auditioned for X Factor in the same season as Thirlwall.

While she didn’t directly comment on Payne’s death, she indicated that she believed the series “had to end” following its conclusion in 2018.

“I don’t think a show like this can exist anymore. We are in a different place now,” she added. “We wouldn’t put a mentally ill person on TV and laugh at him while he sings horribly. The idea of jest in the show is just cruel.”

She described the concept as “totally Roman” and joked that it served as the “best preparation” for her entry into the music industry. On a more serious note, she added, “I don’t know anyone who came out of this show who didn’t have some sort of mental health issue because of it.”

Reflections on Life After the Show

Thirlwall also expressed feeling “conflicted” about the criticism aimed at the show. “It changed my life,” she explained. “I came from a very normal working-class family in the north; I was trying to send demos to labels, performing everywhere, and doing everything I could to make it. I needed a show like this to give me a chance.”

She remarked that only “five percent of the people who were there came out not unharmed, but alive; the other 95 percent suffered in silence.”

Considering how individuals readjust to a normal life after participating in a competition like X Factor, she said: “How do you go from being on this show to working a nine-to-five? How do you sign with a label, think you’ve made it, and then when your song doesn’t make it into the top ten, they just drop you? This machine that we are part of is so wild. Even back then, we understood how lucky we were every day that we were still signed.”

In other news, Jade’s “Angel Of My Dreams” has recently landed at number five on NME‘s list of the 50 best songs of 2024. “If she had a degree in pop music, Jade is a star student,” the post noted. “From the eerie, distorted sample of Sandie Shaw’s ‘Puppet On A String’ to the frantic xenomaniac production, ‘Angel Of My Dreams’ showcases a pop star who truly grasps pop culture and how to create meaningful songs.” It’s distinctly her own.