How Noel Gallagher reacted to being scolded by Jade Thirlwall’s boyfriend
Musician Jordan Stephens confronted the Oasis rocker after he criticised Thirlwall’s group Little Mix
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Jade Thirlwall has revealed that her boyfriend, fellow musician Jordan Stephens, confronted Noel Gallagher after he made disparaging comments about her group, Little Mix.
The pop singer, who released her latest solo single “IT Girl” this month, shared the encounter in an interview on The Louis Theroux Podcast on Spotify.
In 2021, Little Mix had just made history as the first girl band to take home the Brit Award for Best British Group.
However, Gallagher was evidently unimpressed and told The Sun: “Little Mix, with the greatest respect, are not in the same league as Oasis. Not even in the same f***ing sport.”
He said of their success: “It’s a symptom of the music business chasing the numbers – and there not being any bands or songwriters in those bands.”
Thirlwall famously fired back while making a guest appearance oncomedy panel show Never Mind the Buzzcocks, remarking: “[Noel said] something about that we were undeserving of the Brit Award because we’re women and don’t... well, we do write music, but he thinks we don’t write music.”
She continued: “Yeah, shame really. Because you know, we are definitely the most successful girl group in the country, but he’s not even the most successful performer in his family.”
Her quip went viral on social media along with drawing a round of applause and laughter from her Never Mind the Buzzcocks co-stars.
“We're very different bands, so I'll give him that respect,” Thirlwall told Theroux. “We're very, you know, we're a pop girl band. Yeah. I don't know why he was comparing us, actually.
Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music
Sign up now for a 4 month free trial (3 months for non-Prime members)
Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music
Sign up now for a 4 month free trial (3 months for non-Prime members)
“Maybe for the clicks,” Theroux suggested.
“I think so,” Thirlwall agreed. “I think he loves a little confrontation, doesn't he, that one.”
She then revealed that she and Stephens spotted Gallagher at Glastonbury, prompting her boyfriend to go over and say something like, “You are really rude about my girlfriend. Do you want to apologise?”
“He went, ‘F*** off!’” Thirwall said. “And I thought, do you know what? Fair play.”
Little Mix went on hiatus in 2022, with their four original members Thirlwall, Jesy Nelson, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Perrie Edwards all pursuing respective solo careers.
In the same interview, Thirlwall spoke about the intense grief she felt after Nelson abruptly departed from the group in 2020, while confirming she did not begrudge her former bandmate’s decision.
“I will never begrudge Jesy wanting to leave, because if she needed to do that for herself, no matter what happened behind the scenes or, you know, anything that unfolded,” she said.
“I’ll never discredit or invalidate the struggles that she had in the group, particularly at the beginning.”
She added: “[Nelson] really did suffer the most in terms of, like, trolling, the press being really mean, all of that stuff. And it really did some lasting damage. And we always tried our best to support her in that. Sometimes you get it wrong, sometimes you get it right. Like, again, like I said before, we’re not qualified to, especially at 18 years old, to help someone with that.”
Oasis are currently preparing to embark on their hugely anticipated reunion tour, with brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher set to perform in stadiums around the world from June.
The Louis Theroux Podcast is available now on Spotify.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments