‘IT REALLY GOT TO ME’
Samantha Jade talks family and beating the trolls
Since her win in the fourth season of The X Factor in 2012, Samantha Jade has cemented her position as one of our brightest stars, having released four albums as well as showing off her acting chops in Home and Away and INXS: Never Tear Us Apart. The 32-year-old is now working on her new album, due in 2020, which she describes as “her most personal project yet”.
Even though a certain confidence comes from such achievements, Jade admits facing online negativity is never easy.
A sharper tone creeps into the voice of the normally upbeat and smiling singer when she discusses the subject of online trolls.
“I don’t usually reply to negativity, but it depends what it’s about,” she says.
One particular interaction really got to her, and it couldn’t have come at a worse time. In February 2014 Jade’s mother Jacqueline was diagnosed with cancer and ultimately lost her battle against the disease, passing away in June that year.
“When my mum was sick in the hospital, I asked for everyone to pray for my family on Twitter,” she remembers. “At the same time, [the] INXS [miniseries] was airing and I was in that moment where I knew my mum could die. And this one girl wrote back, ‘Way to get publicity for your role in the show.’”
Visibly upset, the singer continues, “I immediately wrote back ‘Sorry?’, because I didn’t even know it was airing that night – it wasn’t on my radar. I wrote back because it was disgusting – I couldn’t believe that one.”
Such difficult moments have provided inspiration for her new album.
“There’s a lot of talk about what I’ve been through in the industry and the scars that’s left,” she reveals. “Some of the most honest things I’ve ever written are in that record
– it felt really nice to get it out. It is also nerve-racking for people to hear, ’cause they’re quite personal stories.”
Jade’s new music also has plenty of positivity. “There’s a lot of talk about love,” she says, citing her family and fiancé, Pat Handlin, as her driving force.
“My biggest support comes from my partner and my dad. My dad is my first phone call. Always. My brothers are, too. They must get so sick of me on our group chat!”
New single ‘Bounce’ (out now) is definitely upbeat. “One of my best friends, Jackie, had this positive idea, like how good it feels to somehow put a bounce in your step,” she explains. “In one of my last sessions with the producer and songwriter, we wrote it within an hour.”