Louise unleashes Confession: "I'm not a heritage act, I'm pushing forward"

A pop veteran with an illustrious 30-year career under her belt, it'd be all too easy for Louise to become complacent. To stick to the status quo. To rinse and repeat her repertoire.

Thankfully, an easy life isn't on the agenda.

Five years on from her last studio album Heavy Love, Louise unleashes Confession; a slinky electro-pop cut that sees her break any boundaries to explore a whole new space sonically.

Joining forces with Jon Shave (a driving force behind Charli xcx's GRAMMY-winning BRAT), Anya Jones and Wayne Hector, Confession is an unapologetic statement of artistic ambition; setting her seamlessly amongst the Big Pop Girls of 2025.

Today, we catch up with Lou to hear about the making of the record, her upcoming album and plans to get back on the road.

MORE: Where every Louise song and album has charted in the UK

Louise, Confession is finally out there. How are you feeling?

It’s so nice to be so excited about people hearing something. I’ve lived with these records for a while now; I’ve never played my own album so much in my whole life. I get in the car and I put my own album on, I don’t care what anyone else thinks!

It can sometimes be hard to get excited about your own projects – you can overthink it and worry if everyone else will like it. But, actually, I just really like it! Finally, people are going to hear it.

It's hard to believe it's been five years since Heavy Love. When did work start on this record?

I started working on it over a year ago. It’s been a good year in the making, then we went in and added the strings; slowly building all the layers. I only got the mastered version about a month ago and I’m absolutely rinsing it!

I always wanted to make a new album. You start getting in the studio, but you never really know how it’ll go. You have an idea of the style of music and where you’d like it to go, but it doesn’t always work out like that. Sometimes it takes a while to get your foot on the gas and find your mojo; but this album just happened. It had that momentum. 

I worked with such great people. I’d have a pinch-me moment some days when I was in the studio, working with such great songwriters and producers, thinking ‘how’s this happened this late on in my career?’

Go on then, who've you worked with this time?

Jon Shave, who just did all the Charli xcx stuff and got a GRAMMY, Wayne Hector, Anya Jones, MNEK; the list goes on. Literally anyone who’s made hit music in the last four or five years is on this album, it’s super exciting. It’s been a dream team; I feel very fortunate to have worked with the people I’ve worked with.

Why was Confession the perfect track to launch this new era with?

Confession really sets the album up; it’s a real departure from everything I’ve done in the past. What I really wanted to do, from the get-go, is let people know that there’s a departure in sound.

I think you can go two ways when you’ve had the career I’ve had; you can carry on doing what you know will suit a certain fanbase or you can keep pushing forward. I don’t want to be a heritage act. I don’t want to be a nostalgic act. I’m so proud of those songs, but I want to keep moving forward. There’s no reason why I can’t be current and make songs that are of the moment. 

Confession created that sound. It has that electro-pop vibe, it’s a bit cheeky lyrically. It’s fun and upbeat. I describe it almost like a train – it just keeps powering through. This song really sets up a new sound and different direction on this album.

It goes without saying that the Big Pop Girls are killing it at the moment. This record feels perfectly-timed...

I feel like that, too. I feel that a few years back it would’ve been hard to have that self-belief to think ‘I can come out with a new sound, still creating something contemporary that can sit in a world of people in their twenties to people in their seventies;’ especially as a woman. We’re at a time where we’re so accepting of that. As long as the record’s good, as long as you’ve found your moment and your sound. 

I think a lot of that’s come from working with great people. One thing I wanted to do on this album was work with people very current, of the moment and ahead of what’s happening; they’re deciding where music’s going.

Do you have a favourite track on the new album?

I love Love Me More at the moment, but I go through different stages. Sometimes I love Manifesting, then I hear Borderline and can’t get the ‘la la’ hook out of my head. My favourite changes all the time. What’s really nice is there’s not a song on the album that I don’t love, and that doesn’t always happen! Every song on the deluxe – all the different versions – I love. 

It’s a really nice place to be in as a singer. As someone who’s made a lot of albums over the years and been fortunate to be at all different levels of the music industry over the years, it’s nice to feel so proud of what I can still bring to the table 30 years on.

On that, did you ever anticipate being in such a place 30 years ago?

Do you know what? No! There’ve been times in the last few years when I never thought I’d been here. You never know what’s going to happen in music, there’s no rhyme nor reason as to why some things land and blow up and others don’t. But I never thought this opportunity would come. 

I always thought I’d make music, because it’s what I do and I’ll always find a way. Did I ever think I’d make an album with the calibre of people I’ve made this album with; people winning GRAMMYs and up for BRITs? No! But I think that’s testament to the people around me, the people I work with on a daily basis, and my passion and love for what I do. And a bit of self-belief, really!

Self-belief, for sure, but what stands out is how humble you still are. You're proof you don't have to be a d*ckhead to make it in the music industry...

I think maybe I’m more ambitious than comes across. I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I know what it takes to do well in this industry. You need to be bit fearless and go for it, but you don’t need to be an arsehole! 

One thing I’ve learnt in the music industry is that, ultimately, it has to come from you. The want to do it, the passion and love for it, having a story to tell and something to say. If that doesn’t come from you, I don’t think your career can be as long-lived as you might want it to be. 

As an artist – whether it be pop, indie, jazz, hip-hop – it has to come from you. You have to create that narrative for yourself. Whether it be the words they say, what they wear, how they express themselves; there has to be an authenticity to it.

And finally, Lou, your fans are crying out for another tour. Is that on the 2025 vision board?

I’d love to. Please, God, if this album does well and there’s a hunger I’ll be on the road! It’s definitely on the agenda, 100 percent. I feel like, as well as to the fans, I owe it to myself as well. It’ll be for everybody that’s supported me over the years, but I also want that moment for me. I want to get out there and put on an amazing show. 

“Doing Mighty Hoopla gave me a real taste of getting back out there with dancers, choreography and a big stage show. I really want the opportunity to do that at the end of the year. This album sets itself up so well for that!

Louise's Confession is out now via Little Lou Records.