Jess Glynne’s breakthrough came through two collaborations rather than a single, straightforward introduction. In 2014, her vocals featured on both Route 94’s “My Love” and Clean Bandit’s “Rather Be”; each reached number one on the UK Singles Chart. The latter won a Grammy, but the pair of hits also established a pattern for Glynne’s career: a distinctive voice moving between dance production, pop songwriting and solo work.

From North London to a record deal

Jessica Hannah Glynne was born in Hampstead on 20 October 1989 and grew up in Muswell Hill, north London. She attended Rhodes Avenue Primary School and Fortismere School, completing her A-levels in 2008. Before music became her profession, she held jobs at a boutique, a fitness centre and a hairdresser’s. After travelling, she worked for a music management company and spent several years building relationships with songwriters and producers.

A month-long music course at Access to Music London, an East London college, brought her into contact with songwriter Jin Jin and producer Bless Beats, collaborators who would become important to her early work. One composition by Glynne and Jin Jin caught the attention of Black Butter Records. The label offered Glynne a publishing deal and introduced her to music managers and lawyers. In August 2013 she signed with Atlantic Records, leaving a job in brand management for a drinks company.

Her route into the public eye had nearly included a television audition: at 15, she was asked to take part in the second series of The X Factor, but left the audition process after a disagreement with the producers. Her subsequent progress came through songwriting, collaboration and recording rather than the programme.

Two number-one collaborations

In 2013, the house producer Route 94 approached Glynne to rewrite and sing on “My Love”. Released as a single in February 2014, it topped the UK chart and was later certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry. Clean Bandit heard the track and invited her to feature on “Rather Be”. That single also reached number one, becoming one of the defining British chart successes of 2014. It topped charts in parts of Europe and Oceania, reached the US top ten and won Glynne the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording.

The success did not confine her to guest vocals. Her first solo single, “Right Here”, produced by Gorgon City, appeared in July 2014 and reached number six in the UK. She performed at British festivals including Bestival, Glastonbury, Lovebox, V Festival and Wireless, then toured the UK from October. She also worked on songwriting projects with Little Mix, MØ, Rudimental and Tinie Tempah. A second Clean Bandit collaboration, “Real Love”, followed in November and reached number two in the UK.

In March 2015, “Hold My Hand” became her second solo single and debuted at number one, where it stayed for three weeks. That June, she featured on Tinie Tempah’s “Not Letting Go”, another UK number one. After surgery on her vocal cords in mid-2015 led her to cancel several live appearances, including Glastonbury, she released her debut album, I Cry When I Laugh, in August. It entered the UK Albums Chart at number one and later achieved triple-platinum certification. Its singles included “Don’t Be So Hard on Yourself” and “Take Me Home”; the latter became the official Children in Need single for 2015.

Albums, touring and a record-breaking run

I Cry When I Laugh established Glynne as a solo recording artist as well as a sought-after collaborator. Its commercial success was not matched by uniform critical approval: the supplied account describes the album’s critical response as mixed. Her next album, Always In Between, arrived in 2018 and debuted at number one in the UK. It included “I’ll Be There”, “These Days” with Rudimental, “All I Am”, “Thursday” and “One Touch” with Jax Jones.

“These Days” reached number one in March 2018 after spending seven consecutive weeks at number two. With that achievement, Glynne became the first British female solo artist to have six UK number-one singles. “I’ll Be There” reached number one in June, taking her total to seven and making her the first British female solo artist to achieve that number of chart-toppers on the UK Singles Chart. “All I Am” reached number seven, while “Thursday” peaked at number three.

Glynne toured in support of the album from November 2018, playing more than 50 dates across Europe, the UK and the United States. In 2019 she was announced as a special guest on the Spice Girls’ reunion stadium tour. That year, she received five Brit Award nominations, including Best British Female and Best British Single nominations for both “These Days” and “I’ll Be There”. Her career has also included television appearances: in 2015 she was a guest judge on The X Factor, and in 2019 she appeared as herself in Neighbours and The Voice Australia.

A new label and a third album

After a disagreement with Atlantic Records over the direction of her music, Glynne parted ways with the label in January 2022. Later that year she signed with United Talent Agency for worldwide representation and joined the management division of Roc Nation. She also confirmed a new recording deal with EMI, with new music planned for 2023.

“Silly Me”, her first release under EMI, appeared on 28 April 2023. Glynne said the split from her previous label and management had been amicable and linked the change to her wish to explore a different sound. “What Do You Do?” followed in July. Her third studio album, Jess, was released on 26 April 2024. She was subsequently presented with the BRIT Billion Award for achieving more than one billion streams in the UK. The album marked a new phase after her first two releases had both opened at the top of the UK Albums Chart.

A voice across pop, soul and dance

Glynne’s music draws on pop, R&B and soul, with dance elements. Her work ranges from the club-influenced collaborations that first brought her widespread attention to solo singles and album tracks. The range is reflected in the career itself: she has sung on records by Route 94, Clean Bandit, Tinie Tempah, Rudimental and Jax Jones, while also releasing three studio albums under her own name.

She has cited Frank Ocean and Amy Winehouse among her musical influences, and named Adele, Sam Cooke, Destiny’s Child, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston and Etta James as inspirations for her vocal style. Her stated songwriting influences include Eminem, Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar. She has also named Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill as the album that motivated her to begin writing songs. These references help place her between vocal traditions and contemporary production, without reducing her music to one genre or one kind of collaboration.

Why Jess Glynne deserves a place in British Legacy

Jess Glynne’s place in British music is grounded in achievements that can be traced through the singles and albums themselves. Two early features, “My Love” and “Rather Be”, reached number one in the UK; “Rather Be” also won a Grammy. She went on to establish a solo career with a number-one single and a debut album that topped the UK Albums Chart. Her second album did the same, while the singles “These Days” and “I’ll Be There” marked milestones in the UK chart history of British female solo artists. These are specific measures of reach and longevity, not simply a reputation for having a memorable voice.

Her career also shows how British popular music can be made through collaboration across styles and roles. Glynne’s path began with songwriting and work with producers, continued through guest vocals on dance records, and expanded into solo albums and tours. That movement between collaborators and her own releases connected her with audiences through radio singles, chart-topping albums and live performances in the UK and abroad. Her later move to EMI and release of Jess added another chapter rather than leaving her story fixed at the first burst of success. For British Legacy, Glynne represents a contemporary London-born artist whose recorded work has made a measurable mark on the national charts and whose career has developed across the changing landscape of British pop, R&B, soul and dance.

Sources

Jess Glynne — revision 1376168626

Adapted in part from Jess Glynne by Wikipedia contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Text has been edited and combined with the existing article; this adapted text is shared under the same licence. Contributor history.