Today marks the tenth anniversary of the release of A Perfect Contradiction, Paloma Faith’s incredible third studio album. Full of massive hits like Can’t Rely on You and Only Love Can Hurt Like This, it’s been certified double-platinum in the UK, paving the way for her first ever Brit Award for British Female Solo Artist. In celebration, this month our artist spotlight lands on Paloma Faith.

It’s fair to say that Paloma is well-known for her theatrical flair and dramatic wardrobe. Her eye for provocative fashion and attention-grabbing designs was likely influenced by her time studying theater-directing at the prestigious and highly revered Central Saint Martins College. Having grown up in North London, Paloma took ballet lessons as a child before moving to Leeds to study contemporary dance. Throughout her studies she worked plenty of creative side jobs from a hip-hop dancer to a singer in a burlesque cabaret, to a life model and magician’s assistant! All these formative experiences surely inform her unique performances and magnetic charisma. 

As Paloma found her voice, she took inspiration from jazz and soul legends like Etta James and Billie Holiday. She was twenty-six when she met her management, but lied and pretended to be four years younger thinking the music industry would judge her as too old for a record deal. Her plan was foiled by an editorial jobsworth. Talking to iNews several years later, she said, “My plan had been to get to a certain level of success and then have a conversation about my age, but I was forced to do it sooner because someone kept changing my Wikipedia page.”

Paloma released her debut record Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful? in September 2009. A collection of timeless, soul-influenced pop theatrics, it spent over one-hundred weeks on the UK album chart, gave flight to the hit singles Stone Cold Sober and New York, and has since been certified twice-platinum. 

In 2012 Paloma released her follow-up, second album Fall to Grace. Working with British producer Nellee Hooper, she diversified her approach, taking in elements of modern RnB to complement her traditional soulful sound. It reached number two in the UK album chart and following her previous success, has been certified double-platinum. 

At the same time as releasing Fall to Grace, she joined The Voice UK as a guest mentor, working with coach Danny O’Donoghue and performing her top ten single Picking up the Pieces during the results show. However it was not her first time in front of the camera. Prior to signing a record deal, Paloma had worked as an actress, starring in movies such as St Trinian’s and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.

In January 2014, Paloma released Can’t Rely On You. The first single from her third album A Perfect Contradiction, which followed two months later, it was co-written and produced with Pharrell Williams. The pair decided to work together after meeting at New York’s Met Ball, where Pharrell approached her with a rendition of her hit New York. Other big name producers who co-wrote or worked on the album include John Legend and Mr Hudson on Take Me, Plan B on Other Woman and Dave Okumu on It’s the Not Knowing. 

The second single to be released from the record was Only Love Can Hurt Like This, a juggernaut of a heartbreak ballad that’s been certified three-times platinum in the UK. It was penned by legendary songwriter Diane Warren, however Paloma initially passed on recording the track as she hadn’t been involved in the writing process. Eventually she came around, overwhelmed by how the song reflects the deep emotions of love and relationships. 

The single went viral on TikTok in 2022 as users created their own montages of heartache. The song’s newfound popularity prompted Paloma to re-record it as a duet with US singer-songwriter Teddy Swims. 

A Perfect Contradiction was released on March 10th 2014. It stayed in the top ten of the UK album chart for 29 weeks and was the best-selling album in the UK by a female artist that year. Less than twelve months later it was certified double-platinum for sales exceeding 600,000 copies in the UK. The following year Paloma won her first Brit Award for British Female Solo Artist.

Since its release, Paloma has put out a further three incredible records including her most recent release, this year’s The Glorification of Sadness. This August she’ll headline the family festival Camp Bestival. Alongside her music, she’s continued her acting and TV appearances, first as a judge on The Voice UK, in the Batman origin series Pennyworth, and as the voice of Portia the goth poodle on 101 Dalmatian Street! 

An inspiring singer, songwriter, actress and all-round vivacious personality, Paloma’s music and artistry continue to shine from one decade to the next.