{"id":293853,"date":"2026-02-20T18:32:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T18:32:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/293853\/"},"modified":"2026-02-20T18:32:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T18:32:09","slug":"youre-not-going-to-tell-me-the-kind-of-artist-i-should-be-i-know-who-i-am","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/293853\/","title":{"rendered":"You’re not going to tell me the kind of artist I should be. I know who I am"},"content":{"rendered":"

Leigh-Anne Pinnock<\/a> didn\u2019t name her debut album \u2018My Ego Told Me To\u2019 on a whim \u2013 it\u2019s a real statement of intent from the Little Mix<\/a> singer-turned-solo star. Last year, after releasing a string of singles and her 2024 EP \u2018No Hard Feelings\u2019 with major label Warner, Leigh-Anne had an \u201cawakening\u201d that changed her career trajectory.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew I needed to leave my label and go independent,\u201d she tells NME when we meet at her publicists\u2019 office in East London. \u201cI was kind of butting heads with them, and it just wasn\u2019t good.\u201d So, Leigh-Anne poured all her \u201cpent-up frustration\u201d into a recording session with producer Clarence Coffee Jr. [Dua Lipa<\/a>, Jessie Ware<\/a>].<\/p>\n

\u201cI had so much to get off my chest,\u201d she recalls. \u201cAnd because I just felt so safe with [Clarence and his team], I literally told them everything that was going on. And \u2018Dead And Gone\u2019 and \u2018Revival\u2019 came out of that. Both tracks have such a different energy compared to anything I\u2019ve done before \u2013 and more confidence as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leigh-Anne isn\u2019t exaggerating. \u201cBlowin\u2019 up the past, drop a rose for the shy girl, I\u2019m hot-blooded and cold,\u201d she sings over a loping reggae beat on \u2018Dead And Gone\u2019. \u201cI was like, \u2018I really like this version of myself and need to bring it more to the forefront,\u201d Leigh-Anne says.<\/p>\n

Now, these two tracks form the bedrock of \u2018My Ego Told Me To\u2019, her debut solo album out today. It\u2019s a cohesive collection rooted in the reggae<\/a> of Leigh-Anne\u2019s Jamaican and Barbadian heritage, but also flecked with pop<\/a>, dance<\/a>, R&B<\/a> and rock<\/a>. Throughout, Leigh-Anne reconnects with her unfettered teenage self: the driven dreamer from High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire who knew she was destined for pop stardom.<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess you could call her an alter ego, but she is basically that young girl who went for The X Factor, dyed her hair red, and wouldn\u2019t listen to anyone who tried to tell her no,\u201d she says. Auditioning for The X Factor in 2011 changed Leigh-Anne\u2019s life forever. The judges placed her in a fledgling girl-group alongside three other hopefuls \u2013 Jade Thirlwall<\/a>, Perrie Edwards<\/a> and Jesy Nelson<\/a> \u2013 and Little Mix was born.<\/p>\n

After winning the show, they went on to rack up 19 UK top 10 singles and seven UK top 10 albums before going on hiatus in 2022, two years after Nelson left the group. But along the way, a constant stream of toxic social media comments and the pressures of being in a high-achieving pop group gradually chipped away at Leigh-Anne\u2019s confidence.<\/p>\n

Now, after a tricky start to her solo career, Leigh-Anne is in charge of her destiny once more. It\u2019s no coincidence that she\u2019s dyed her hair red for the \u2018My Ego Told Me To\u2019 album cover and promo campaign. In a candid In Conversation<\/a> interview, she talks about finding her sound, reclaiming control and the \u201cfighter spirit\u201d that Little Mix gave her.<\/p>\n

\"\"Photography Credit: Niklas Haze<\/p>\n

Hi, Leigh-Anne! So, first up, which song on the album do you think will surprise people the most?<\/p>\n

\u201cI just think the whole album\u2026 There\u2019s so much variety on there and I am a very versatile artist, but at the same time, I think there\u2019s a sort of reggae-leaning sound that is the footprint for the album. I found my thing, my lane, and that was my main goal. Like, what do you want to say? How do you want this to sound and feel? And I just feel like I\u2019ve got there.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if I had to choose one song, I\u2019d maybe say \u2018Look Into My Eyes\u2019 because it\u2019s very unexpected. It\u2019s the first song on the album and I love how it starts with this reggae sample feel, and then it just hits into, like, a four-to-the-floor sort of thing. That [switch] really comes out of nowhere. And for me, that song is all about taking up space and being unapologetic. It\u2019s like: \u2018If you\u2019re with me, you\u2019re with me; if you\u2019re not, see ya. I\u2019m gonna do me.’\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted people to know who I am and my heritage\u201d<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s talk about another standout track from the album, \u2018Revival\u2019. I feel like if you were a wrestler, this could be your ringwalk song.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love that. And I love wrestling as well. Yes, \u2018Revival\u2019 is all about taking back control. And I guess it\u2019s [also about] not letting people tell you what they think you should be. It\u2019s about trusting myself and realising that I\u2019ve done so much to get to this point, so you\u2019re not going to tell me the kind of artist I should be. I know who I am. And I\u2019m reclaiming that power again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Was it harder to assert yourself in that way because you have a track record? Because the way the industry would see it is: \u2018Little Mix were successful, so that\u2019s what Leigh-Anne should be doing musically.’\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh my gosh, yes. And there were all these expectations over my shoulder to be as successful as the group. Like, what does that even look like? How is that even possible? You know, coming into the solo journey, it should have been one of the funnest times of my life \u2013 one of the most amazing times. And I shouldn\u2019t have had that pressure, because we\u2019ve done it [as a group]. Like, this is now for me. Obviously, I want everything to be successful, but this is my chance to do the music that I love. So yeah, I think that was a big thing [to get across].\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Photography Credit: Alex Evans<\/p>\n

One of my favourite tracks on the album is \u2018You Are A Star\u2019, an interlude featuring your grandparents. What made you want to include them? It\u2019s such a sweet moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted people to know who I am and my heritage. Like, why have I decided to have an album rooted in reggae? Why has she done this? And having my grandma say, \u2018You are a star \u2013 when you went for The X Factor, that\u2019s what you said to me\u2019, is just so key to my story because that\u2019s my ego, that\u2019s my younger self.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then with my grandad, I really wanted him to say what makes a Pinnock strong. Because we\u2019ve always had this thing in our family \u2013 we\u2019re quite patriotic of our surname. It\u2019s like, \u2018If you\u2019re a Pinnock, come on, you can do this.\u2019 So I wanted to know, like, \u2018Where did this [attitude] come from?\u2019 So I just said, \u2018Grandma, can you please get a voice note from grandad?\u2019 And then she said what she said, and it became this really beautiful moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

That drive you had from a young age, which your grandma talks about, where did it come from? Did you always know you wanted to be a performer?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s interesting, because I was so shy as a child \u2013 like, I would hide behind my dad\u2019s legs and say, \u2018I hate people\u2019. I was so painfully shy, but I had this little voice and just wanted to sing. So I just knew in my heart that I had to overcome this fear. I\u2019d always look at the floor and have the backing track too loud [when I sang], but it was something that I really worked at, putting myself out there at talent shows and whatever else. And I guess as I got older, and into secondary school, I built a lot of confidence. Like, I was always the one doing debating class and standing up for my friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess I had a lot of fire and determination. And anyone that I met, I told them I was going to be a pop star. I was seriously deluded! I\u2019d write Facebook statuses like: \u2018Leigh-Anne is going to be a star. Leigh-Anne is going to be rich one day. Leigh-Anne is going to be performing at Madison Square Garden.\u2019 I didn\u2019t listen to anyone who had anything to say against that. I didn\u2019t care, and I just went for it. And now [I look back and think] \u2018OK, that was that girl.\u2019 And then I got into the group and my dream came true. And then slowly it started to trickle away, that sort of energy. So I just knew I had to bring it back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI want everything to be successful, but this is my chance to do the music that I love\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Photography Credit: Niklas Haze<\/p>\n

Artists who come from a reality show tend to face a certain stigma, and actually, girlbands can face that stigma anyway. At what point did you feel that Little Mix were finally being taken seriously?<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so funny. You know, we were talking earlier about how people used to look at pop music as well \u2013 like, it wasn\u2019t cool. Sometimes it felt like there was nothing we could do to make people realise that we were incredible artists. Like, \u2018We write our own music. Look how hard we work.\u2019 We had to work ten times harder. And I just think it\u2019s quite a different day and age now, isn\u2019t it? And I wonder what it would be like if we existed now. I\u2019m pretty sure we would have had a Grammy<\/a> by now \u2013 things like that, you know?<\/p>\n

\u201cBut then, I also feel like all of that [struggle] gave us the fighter spirit that we all have now, and we\u2019re all still humble as well. Like, not to blow my own trumpet, but we are all normal [people]. And I think that comes from having good people around us, too. So actually, I look back on our career and everything we did, and I really love that it went the way it did.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finally, we asked JADE this question as well<\/a>, but if any Little Mix song could pop off on TikTok, which would you like it to be?<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you know what: \u2018No More Sad Songs\u2019. I mean, it still did very well [at the time], but I think for that song to have another little life would be nice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leigh-Anne\u2019s \u2018My Ego Told Me To\u2019 is out now via Virgin Music Group.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Leigh-Anne Pinnock didn\u2019t name her debut album \u2018My Ego Told Me To\u2019 on a whim \u2013 it\u2019s a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":293854,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[156,45873,157,111,139,69,4913,63954],"class_list":["post-293853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-entertainment","tag-in-conversation","tag-music","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-pop","tag-reggae"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=293853"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/293853\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/293854"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=293853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=293853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=293853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}