Lily Allen has spoken of the impact of her 2025 album West End Girl, revealing that women in unhappy relationships have been reaching out to her.
The UK pop star, 40, narrated the breakdown of a marriage in her critically lauded fifth album, which heralded a major comeback for the “Smile” artist.
In a cover feature for Elle UK, Allen said it was “f***ing insane” while recalling how women would tell her “really graphic stuff” about the state of their relationships.
“Literally like, ‘My husband will be f***ing me in the ass while he is texting other women’. It makes me feel so s***’,” she said.
She added that she hoped her music would make listeners feel “less alone”.
In the same interview, Allen, who has two daughters with her ex-husband Sam Cooper, said her fellow parents at her children’s school supported her through a tough time.
“They could see how drawn I was and how withdrawn I became and how skinny I got and how sad I was,” she explained.
“They’d come and pick up their kids from play dates and I wouldn’t come downstairs. I’d be in my bedroom crying. And so I think this album came out and they’re all happy for me.”
Allen and her children moved to New York when she married Stranger Things star David Harbour in 2020. They separated in early 2025 after four years of marriage.
The “Ruminating” singer said she was feeling optimistic about the future: “I feel liberated,” she said. “It’s a really nice feeling. I’m genuinely psyched and excited for the next couple of years.
“And I try not to think about the details of it too much. But what a gift to be at the age I’m at and for people to be connecting with my creative output in this way, and for me to be able to take it on the road and for my kids to be able to watch me do it. And to be able to get paid for it. So yeah… It’s f***ing great.”
Allen is currently in a good-natured chart battle for the No 1 spot with British punk-rock duo The Molotovs, after releasing the vinyl edition of West End Girl last week.
She is preparing to embark on a theatre tour in March in support of the album, ahead of an arena tour and a headline performance at Mighty Hoopla festival this summer.
Allen is also up for top prizes at the Brit Awards next month, including Artist of the Year, and Album of the Year for West End Girl.
The March issue of Elle UK is available from 5 February.
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