Music analysis: Lola Young is more than “Messy”

At a time when authenticity has become a marketing strategy, Lola Young has built a career on something far riskier: telling the truth before she's finished living it.

There are plenty of pop stars who spend years polishing away every rough edge before the world ever sees them. Lola Young has built her career by leaving them in.

When she returned to London's O2 Academy Brixton this summer after a months-long hiatus from live performance, there was no dramatic comeback speech waiting for the crowd. 

There was no attempt to rewrite the previous year or package it into an inspirational story. 

She simply looked across the room and admitted, "I've missed this so much."

It was a small moment, but it said everything, writes Music News Blitz’s Zinhle Radebe.