TOUGH GIG
Huge Brit singer admits she needed ‘lots of therapy and medication’ after struggling in music industry
The star says she does not know how much fight she has left
THERE are plenty of tales about mistreatment in the music business – but it sounds as if Mabel has suffered more than most.
The singer has issued a withering putdown of the industry, and is unsure how much more she can take.
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Reflecting on her career, Mabel said: “I needed a lot of therapy.
"I needed medication. Then everybody’s like, ‘You’re difficult, you’re emotional, you’re a nightmare’.
“I don’t know how much fight I have. I’m constantly fighting.
"I love what I do so much, but how long I will fight for, I don’t know, which is really sad.”
READ MORE ON MABEL
She burst on to the charts in 2017 with Finders Keepers, which was the first of six Top Ten tunes.
‘No real support’
But confusion in the biz about what sound she could take meant she was steered away from going with her gut feeling when it came to songs.
Mabel, whose mum is Neneh Cherry, explained: “I think the main problem is that our voices are not heard.
“You add social media on to that, and then you have people judging you.
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"Basically, all the time I used to get, ‘Oh, she’s generic.
'"Her mum was one of a kind and she’s just like a whatever pop star’.
Iain Stirling jokes about Toby and Mabel as sexy star performs in the villa
“And I’m like, well, I signed at 18, and I’ve been given no real support.
“There’s no duty of care. I think particularly as a young woman, it’s so easy to get moulded into something, which usually is based on another female.
"Like, ‘This person’s done this, so this is what you should do’. And then you get cussed for being generic.
“Then there’s no responsibility from the people that have put you in those positions to help you get out of them.”
Thankfully, it’s not all blue for Mabel, who, while dealing with the drama of her day job, has found peace with her fiancé Preye Crooks, who proposed to her in November.
But it wasn’t love at first sight, as she thought he was too boring for her when they first met.
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Mabel, who said she had been treated badly by exes who had hidden secret girlfriends and kids from her, explained: “Subconsciously when I met Preye, I was just like, ‘No, he’s too normal.
"He’s not going to get this. He’s too nice. He would ask me how I am. And I’m like, ‘What do you want? What’s the catch here?’
“Because honestly, all I wanted to do was sit around chasing some guy that probably didn’t reply, probably had a secret baby, secret girlfriend. All true stories. Sad but it’s true.”
She soon came to her senses and is now planning a big wedding, which could even be in a major landmark as his dad, ex-Spurs footballer Garth Crooks, has an OBE which gets them access.
On where they could tie the knot, she told the Miss Me podcast: “It’s like St Paul’s Cathedral. I think there’s a few things you can do. I’m like, what can we get out of this?”
I don’t blame her.
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TOM GRENNAN’s cover of The Best A Man Can Get for Gillette is so insanely catchy, it’s now the song fans demand he plays at his gigs.
He’s using the track for a good cause, after creating a football shirt to help raise money for charity.
Tom and grooming company Gillette have designed a retro football jersey, in a nod to the 1989 original ad track, with all profits going to education and social inclusion charity Football Beyond Borders.
Tom told me: “This whole thing with Gillette, it really wouldn’t be anything without the fans who have supported me and championed me from day one – so this shirt is for them.”
The £60 top is available from art-of-football.com. I’ve got mine.
Phoebe back in the fold
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PHOEBE DYNEVOR went high fashion in this dress with a fanned bodice.
The actress wore the striking black and white ruffled outfit to a New York screening of her latest film Inheritance on Thursday night, as she hit the promo trail.
But while we’ll soon be able to see Phoebe on screen again in the espionage flick, don’t expect to see her back on the small screen in Netflix show Bridgerton, which sent her career rocketing in the first place.
Her character Daphne Basset had a key role in the first series of the Regency drama, but only appeared briefly in series two and was absent from the third.
It looks like she is now gone for good, as Phoebe has not been invited back for the fourth series, which began filming in September.
She said in the US: “They’ve not called me yet, and I think they’re shooting season four right now. So, I’m still waiting for that call . . . ”
Si a touch late
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FANS keen to watch Simon Cowell’s hunt for the UK’s next big boyband will have to wait a little longer for the series.
Insiders have told me the show is now being slated for release later this autumn.
A source said: “Simon and the production team have worked so hard on this show and Simon is particularly proud of the talent they’ve found and helped on their journeys.
“The earliest the show will be aired now will be in the autumn. Simon wants everything to be perfect, as with all his projects.”
I first told you last March that Simon had teamed up with Box To Box for the new show.
He held auditions for lads up and down the country over the summer, with more than 1,000 people coming through the doors to try their luck in front of the former X Factor boss.
At the time, insiders told me a deal was close to being struck with Netflix, but that streamers such as Apple and Prime Video were also keen to see what Simon could come up with.
During the auditions, the release forms said the working title of the series was Midas Touch, which is fitting given most of the things Simon touches turn to gold.
He is now back on the judging panel for ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent and has been filming the shows for the next series in Blackpool with Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon and Bruno Tonioli.
No doubt he’ll be back cracking the whip on this series soon enough.
IF you are struggling to get out of bed on these miserable January days, stick on Aitch's new banger Raving In The Studio.
The Mancunian rapper has teamed up with Bou for the upbeat track, which samples Gorillaz’s brilliant Feel Good Inc.
Damon Albarn gave Aitch his blessing to use his tune and I can guarantee it will get you moving, even if your brain is telling you to stay in bed.
Kylie new wave
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KYLIE MINOGUE has got a new hairstyle for 2025 – showing of her wave and fringe in this Instagram pic.
She wore a stunning black bodice to celebrated the release of her first single of the year.
The Aussie singer has put out a new version of the track Someone For Us, which was on her 2024 album Tension II. But this release has been remixed by German DJ duo Younotos.
Kylie has barely stopped for the past few years, but if you thought she would be taking a break, you’d be mistaken.
Next month she will kick off the long-anticipated Tension tour Down Under in Perth.
Kylie then has dates in Asia, North America and – eventually in May and June – the UK, before continuing around Europe.
When it finally wraps at the end of August, she will need a well-earned holiday or two.
Spain start for Stones tour?
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I REVEALED in November that the Rolling Stones were putting the finishing touches to plans for a European tour this summer.
And now speculation has ramped up in the Spanish press that the band, fronted by Sir Mick Jagger, could be heading to Barcelona to kick off their run of shows.
According to those reports, Barcelona football club wants to welcome Mick, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood to the Spotify Camp Nou stadium this spring.
The venue is having a massive makeover, adding a third tier, retractable roof and a 360-degree screen.
Fans have jumped on the rumours and speculation is running wild, with dates also said to be lined up in Italy, Germany and Austria.
The tour is in support of the Stones’ last album Hackney Diamonds, which went to No1 when it was released in 2023.
I’m a huge fan of the Stones and desperate for them to announce these dates so I can get my hands on tickets.
Plus I love a bit of tapas, so if they are heading to Barca, I know where I’m going for my summer holiday this year.
Stormzy's £7m for rainy day
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STORMZY has had a fairly quiet year – but new accounts show he is now sitting on a £7.6million fortune.
The Backbone rapper has four firms he funnels his cash through, and documents filed at Companies House reveal he made a minimum of £4.62million last year, based on the amount of tax he handed over.
He paid at least £1.36million during the 12-month period, so is certainly been raking it in.
His last album This Is What I Mean came out in November 2022, so there are high hopes of a new record from him this year.
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In the summer of 2023, Stormzy confirmed he was back in the studio, so he has had plenty of time to work on the project.
And I’m sure his split from Maya Jama last summer will have provided plenty of inspiration.
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