Lola Young is opening up about one of the most challenging periods of her life.
In a deeply personal conversation with Rolling Stone, the 25-year-old singer behind the hit song “Messy” spoke honestly about her struggles with addiction, mental health, and the intense pressure that followed her sudden rise in the music industry.
Over the past year, Young’s career has grown rapidly. However, the whirlwind success came with a heavy emotional toll.
“It was a whirlwind of a year. It was so mad and beautiful and exciting, but it was also, at times, very sad,” she admitted noting that she was battling an addiction to cocaine and working with a sober coach who traveled with her for much of the year.
While her music career was taking off, Young says her personal life was becoming harder to manage.
“If I’m gonna be honest with you, the enjoyment was deteriorating. Just small things that I had to do: an interview, a piece of promo. I just didn’t know all the stuff that comes with it. But I wasn’t in a good place, and there’s two sides of the coin…you want to say yes to everything because everything’s on the table, but then you also have to balance that with your mental health, and I’ve been super open about my mental-health condition that I suffer from, and also about all the other stuff that’s going on for me.”
Young has previously spoken about being diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and ADHD, conditions that can make navigating fame even more complicated.
Her struggles reached a public turning point last September when she collapsed on stage at the All Things Go festival.
The moment quickly spread online, but Young now says that incident became a wake-up call that pushed her to seek deeper support.
Afterward, she stepped away from the spotlight and visited a holistic treatment center that focused on therapy and psychology alongside addiction recovery.
She also began attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and working closely with a sponsor.
Reflecting on the viral footage of her collapse, Young says she has only watched it a few times.
“I have watched it, yes. I saw it once or twice, and I haven’t really gone back to it since. Obviously, I’m not going to be searching it. It’s not something I’d like to search. But I am very grateful that it happened because it was, what do you call that? Like, a breaking point which allowed me to then be able to be here today, allowed me to be better for my fans, better for the future, and better for myself.”
Today, she’s focusing on slowing down and creating healthier routines.
“One thing that’s really helped me is slowing down, mentally, taking time to process. Days off, that’s really important. Enjoying time with friends, people that love you. There was a bunch of hate, but you know what? F–k it. When you’re doing something, there’s always going to be a couple motherf–kers talking s–t. But at the same time, it was a decision, like I said, that I had to make, and it was sad that I had to do that. What else was I going to do, die? That was the reality of where my addiction was heading.”
Now returning to music in 2026, Young says she feels stronger—and more grounded.
“I’ve been away, I’ve taken some time out, and this is a beautiful comeback. It feels like a moment I’ll remember, and maybe other people will remember, hopefully. It feels like the right thing to come back to.”
