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Lola Young is reflecting on her time away from the spotlight.
The British singer delivered a live piano rendition of her hit song “Messy” at the 2026 Grammy Awards on Monday, Feb. 2, marking her first televised performance since taking a career break after collapsing on stage at the All Things Go Music Festival in N.Y.C. in September 2025.
Young, who also took home her first Grammy for Best Pop Solo Performance with “Messy” at the awards show, reflected on taking a break for her health while talking to reporters in the press room following her win.
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“You’ve got to protect your mental health in this industry. This is a very difficult industry to be in,” she said. “I took the time out to get better because there’s a lot of things going on right now in my head, in my personal life.”
The “Dealer” musician spoke about how she had to “make a decision to do it for myself and to be kind to myself, give myself space.”
“But now I am back. I feel better,” explained Young. “I will do as much that I can to be good for my fans, and to be good for the people that love me. Thank you for all of my fans and everyone that supports me and everyone who understands me. It’s a very beautiful moment.”
Following Young’s onstage collapse at All Things Go, she announced her then-upcoming performances were canceled. “I’m going away for a while. It pains me to say I have to cancel everything for the foreseeable future,” she said on Instagram at the time. “Thank you for all the love and support.”
Elsewhere in the statement, Young — who’s been open about struggling with addiction and mental health — wrote, “I really hope you’ll give me a second chance once I’ve had some time to work on myself and come back stronger.”
CBS
In the 2026 Grammys press room, Young revealed she “was actually nervous as hell” to perform on the awards show. “I can’t lie,” she said, reflecting on both her performances at the ceremony and Spotify’s Best New Artist party on Jan. 29. “I don’t like sugarcoating things. I feel like I’m pretty honest and I’m just nervous. I was nervous tonight.”
“We as artists, we have nerves,” continued Young, noting that “this is what I want to do.”
“This is the place where I feel like I belong. On stage is where I feel like I belong,” she said.
If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.
