Lily Allen looks poised for a music comeback following a seven-year break from the charts.
I can exclusively reveal the Smile singer has been approached by a number of major labels in recent months — including BMG — after they asked to hear what she had been working on.
A source said: “Lily has been quietly beavering away on new music for a while, on and off, but her schedule has been packed.
“Her podcast Miss Me? has really taken off and she is taking on the leading role in Hedda at the Theatre Royal in Bath in June, as well as working on a new musical she is developing.
“After she shared pictures of herself in the studio, labels got in touch to hear what she has been working on.
“She has had an approach from BMG, who think her new music is sounding great.
“Lily is busy writing songs for her musical and right now she’s only thinking about that – but naturally she’s flattered by the interest in her. There is a lot of excitement around Lily.
“She sold millions of records before, so it’s not surprising labels want to get her on board.
“Lily isn’t rushing into anything though. She is a perfectionist and if she is committing to a project, she wants to give it her all.
“She will focus on Hedda this summer and see how she wants to proceed with her music.”
Lily has a string of hits to her name, with ten Top Ten tracks including three No1s thanks to Smile, The Fear and Somewhere Only We Know. Her fourth and last album, No Shame, peaked at No8 in 2018.
Lily is riding high this week after selling out her two Miss Me? Live podcast shows with Miquita Oliver in London.
Insiders told me the shows went down so well that promoters are keen to see if the pair would sign up for a nationwide tour at some point.
Between treading the boards, a possible new album and perhaps a UK jaunt with her pal Miquita, I have no idea where Lily is going to find the time to fit this all in.
But as a huge fan of her hits, including the 2008 track F*** You, which is still on all of my Spotify playlists, I would love her to make that fifth record a reality.
Check out Simz in disguise
Most celebs want to turn back time when it comes to their looks – but not Little Simz.
The rapper transformed herself into a granny for a barmy new video.
Simz, who won the Mercury Prize and the Brit Awards’ Best New Artist in 2022, put on a grey wig, false teeth and a funky tartan outfit.
An onlooker in London told me: “Simz shut down a street in Hackney but people were buzzing around trying to work out who she was at first.
“She looked totally crazy in her disguise but she was absolutely loving getting into character.
“At one point she was filmed dancing up and down the street before she started having a row with a fake traffic warden.
“As far as music videos go, this one is the weirdest she’s ever done.”
Måneskin’s singer Damiano David has announced his debut solo album, Funny Little Fears.
The 14-track record from the 2021 Eurovision-winning frontman will be out on May 16.
It could well mean he pops up at the contest’s final in Basel, Switzerland, for a performance the following day.
Meanwhile, Dermot Kennedy last night dropped his single Let Me In, ahead of the start of his global music festival series, Misneach. The three special events start in Sydney on March 16, and feature Dermot headlining each show alongside musical guests.
She’s Tyla made
Tyla looked every inch the catwalk queen during Chanel’s Paris Fashion Week show.
The Water singer wore a purple two-piece from the designer, after being invited to sit on the front row with Vogue boss Anna Wintour.
Tyla was spotted chatting with Anna, below, who was no doubt toasting her success after Tyla became the first South African woman to land a cover of British Vogue.
She appears in the March edition and said: “You know when you’ve always felt like you’re destined for something, that you’re going to make it one day? But then when it actually happens it’s like something you can’t explain. It doesn’t feel real.”
Danny Dyer is chuffed at the number of people who have rocked up to see his new film Marching Powder.
He said on his Live And Let Dyers podcast: “I want to shout out to all of you people that f***ing got on your feet and walked to a cinema because we earned over £1million over three days.
“We wasn’t making the film for the elite. You’ve got to think, we’re up against Bridget Jones. That cost about £90million to make. You know what? We hold our own. And it just really f***ing excites me.
“It shows there is an appetite for this sort of film.”
Becky In nepo dig at Jack
Becky Hill has branded Jack Whitehall a “privately educated nepo baby” after he referred to her as “Wetherspoons Whitney” at the Brit Awards.
Referencing the jibe Jack made about her, Becky wrote on Instagram: “Imagine being called a ‘Wetherspoons Whitney’ by some privately educated nepo baby who has a TV show with daddy the showbiz agent on national TV.
“My parents worked so hard to provide a middle-class life for me, even tho they couldn’t afford it. No one gave me a leg up.
“So if you associate a Midlands accent with a Wetherspoons that says more about the silver spoon in your mouth jolly ol’ boy.”
She added: “Remember to not be out of touch today kids, even if ur daddy is rich.
“Shout out Jack Whitehall for the fuel to my fire.”
Ibiza is the place to be this summer if you are a fan of Calvin Harris.
The Scottish DJ is making history at Ushuaia after becoming the first artist to secure a double residency, as the demand for tickets is so high.
Calvin will perform 25 shows at the club on the White Isle.
Head to theushuaiaexperience.com to buy tickets.
Eve: drink tag was saviour
Eve has revealed how she quit prescription drugs and alcohol after being charged with drink-driving at the height of her career in 2007.
Appearing on Paloma Faith’s Mad, Sad & Bad podcast, the Let Me Blow Ya Mind rapper, below, said: “I had to wear a tag.
“It monitors your body temperature and it can tell from your sweat if you’ve had alcohol.
“The anklet made me sane again because I couldn’t remember a time I hadn’t drank.
“I got into the car accident, because I was drinking. But I was also taking Xanax on top of the drinking. I was trying to be numb.
“I was also trying to get skinny for videos. So when I got my DUI, I wasn’t that drunk, I was on diet pills.
“It was such a bad time and that’s why I said that little anklet definitely helped me.”
Ne-Yo’s up four sharing
Ne-Yo has gone public with his girlfriends – all four of them – after revealing he is in a five-way relationship.
That’s right, he has outdone even David Haye, who previously dated his model girlfriend Sian Osborne and The Saturdays singer Una Healy at the same time.
The Miss Independent singer, who finished second on The Masked Singer in 2021, shared snaps of Cristina, Arielle, Moneii and Bri on Instagram, and wrote: “Since the world is so intrigued, I guess I should introduce my loves properly. Ladies and gents, I present my pyramid.”
The dad of seven, who divorced his wife Crystal in 2023 after seven years of marriage, said on US radio: “After my divorce I decided I ain’t lying to anybody no more.
“I hurt a lot of people with just being dishonest about things I could have been honest about.
“Everything ain’t for everybody. But monogamy wasn’t for me. I’m happier than I’ve ever been and that’s the part that I’m focusing on.”
