Lola Young Shares Her Ongoing Journey of Recovery and Growth: “I’m Feeling Much Better”
Lola Young, the British pop sensation, is reemerging in the music scene, yet she acknowledges that her recovery journey is far from over. In a candid interview with The Sunday Times, published on March 28, Young discussed the ongoing challenges of her sobriety as she returns to live performances following a stay at a treatment center. This interview comes shortly after her emotional presentation of the hit "Messy" at the 2026 Grammys, marking her first public performance since her alarming collapse at the All Things Go festival in September.
“I think I would rather for the sake of my privacy not say too much,” Young stated when addressing her recovery with the publication. “But what I would say is that recovery is an ongoing process. I’m not the finished article, but I’m doing a hell of a lot better.”
Clarifying further, she acknowledged, “I mean drugs recovery, yes. When you’re in recovery … that doesn’t necessarily need to mean drugs — but me specifically, yes.”
Young has been transparent about her battles with mental health and substance abuse, having previously opened up about living with schizoaffective disorder. In a recent cover story for Rolling Stone, she revealed that the compounded pressures of her rising fame made it increasingly difficult to manage her cocaine dependency, ultimately contributing to her “breaking point” at the All Things Go festival.
Following her onstage collapse, Young canceled her upcoming tour dates, opting to step back to focus on her well-being and spend time in a treatment facility. “What I can tell you is that I was being looked after,” she recalled about her experience there.
She also shared insights on the overwhelming nature of fame. “As artists, we are public-facing figures,” Young noted. “We get scrutiny, we get people calling us out, we get people not liking our bloody outfits — we have to deal with all of it. And even though from the outside it may look like we are doing fine, sometimes we’re not.”
The challenges Young faced amplified the significance of her Grammy win for Best Pop Solo Performance for “Messy.” Reflecting on the moment, she admitted, “I was s–tting myself. I was in shock to be there, I was in shock to have won.”
Shortly after the awards ceremony, Young returned to the stage for a one-night-only concert at London’s Palladium, marking her first performance since her hiatus.
