Paloma Faith

Biography

Paloma Faith Blomfield (born 21 July 1981) is an English singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. After signing with Epic Records in 2008, Faith released her debut album, Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?×Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?24 September 2009 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Stone Cold Sober2:542Smoke & Mirrors3:063Broken Doll4:074Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?4:355Upside Down3:096Romance Is Dead3:047New York3:398Stargazer3:459My Legs Are Weak4:4810Play On4:04 (2009), which produced the UK top-twenty singles "Stone Cold Sober×Stone Cold Sober12 June 2009 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Stone Cold Sober (radio edit)2:572Stone Cold Sober (Cicada remix)6:403Stone Cold Sober (Cicada ’83 Dub)5:404Stone Cold Sober (Blunt Laser remix)4:04" and "New York×New York4 September 2009 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1New York3:412Luv Ya2:51". Her second album, Fall to Grace×Fall to Grace28 May 2012 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracks1Picking Up the Pieces4:05230 Minute Love Affair3:193Black & Blue4:024Just Be4:385Let Me Down Easy2:486Blood, Sweat & Tears4:187Beauty of the End3:228When You’re Gone4:169Agony3:1210Let Your Love Walk In4:2511Freedom3:2012Streets of Glory3:2213Never Tear Us Apart3:05 (2012), charted at number two on the UK Albums Chart, earned her two Brit Award nominations, and spawned her first UK top-ten single "Picking Up the Pieces×Picking Up the Pieces20 April 2012 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Picking Up the Pieces (radio edit)3:40" and the top-twenty cover version of INXS's "Never Tear Us Apart×Never Tear Us Apart21 September 2012 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Never Tear Us Apart3:052Never Tear Us Apart (orchestral version)3:05".
Faith's third album, A Perfect Contradiction×A Perfect Contradiction10 March 2014 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Can't Rely on You3:152Mouth to Mouth4:233Take Me3:104Only Love Can Hurt Like This3:525Other Woman3:086Taste My Own Tears3:027Trouble With My Baby3:008The Bigger You Love (The Harder You Fall)3:019Impossible Heart4:3110Love Only Leaves You Lonely4:3111It's the Not Knowing3:2912Beauty Remains3:3613Ready for the Good Life3:2514Leave While I'm Not Looking3:5315Changing3:16 (2014), was certified double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry and spawned the UK top-ten singles "Can't Rely on You" and "Only Love Can Hurt Like This×Only Love Can Hurt Like This11 May 2014 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Only Love Can Hurt Like This (MS MR remix)3:342Only Love Can Hurt Like This (Adam Turner remix)6:53", with the latter topping the charts in Australia. She collaborated with the duo Sigma on the 2014 single "Changing×Changing14 September 2014 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Changing3:11", which charted atop the UK singles chart. Her fourth album, The Architect×The Architect17 November 2017 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Evolution1:042The Architect3:253Guilty4:194Crybaby3:545I’ll Be Gentle4:156Politics of Hope0:547Kings and Queens3:518Surrender3:339Warrior3:4410Til I’m Done3:4411Lost and Lonely3:4112Still Around3:4713Pawns0:5114WW33:1015Love Me as I Am4:31 (2017), debuted at number one in the UK, becoming Faith's first number one album. In 2018, she co-wrote and featured on DJ Sigala's single "Lullaby×Lullaby23 February 2018 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Lullaby3:24". Her next two albums, Infinite Things×Infinite Things13 November 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracks1Supernatural3:342Monster3:113Gold3:584Falling Down3:355Infinite Things4:486If This Is Goodbye4:447Better Than This3:288Me Time3:189If Loving You Was Easy3:4510Beautiful & Damned2:3711I’d Die for You4:0112Living With a Stranger3:2713Last Night on Earth2:49 (2020) and The Glorification of Sadness×The Glorification of Sadness16 February 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 17 tracks1Sweatpants3:312Pressure3:443God in a Dress3:424How You Leave a Man3:345There’s Nothing More Human Than Failure1:196Bad Woman2:457Cry on the Dance Floor4:138Say My Name2:569Let It Ride3:2110The Big Bang Ending0:4211Eat Shit and Die3:1212Divorce4:2113Hate When You’re Happy3:5314Enjoy Yourself2:5315I Am Enough4:0616Mirror to Mirror0:3717Already Broken4:05 (2024), both reached the top-five in the UK.
As an actress, Faith appeared in the films St Trinian's (2007), The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), Dread (2009), Youth (2015), and the television series Pennyworth (2019–2022). She has also served as a coach on the television talent show The Voice UK (2016) and its spin-off The Voice Kids (2020). In 2024, Faith released the memoir, MILF, which became a Sunday Times Bestseller. In 2025, she was a contestant on the first series of the reality television show The Celebrity Traitors.

Early life

Paloma Faith Blomfield was born in the Hackney area of London on 21 July 1981, the daughter of an English mother and Spanish father. Both of her parents were raised in Norfolk. Her parents separated when she was two years old and divorced two years later. She was raised by her mother in Stoke Newington, although she maintains a close relationship with her paternal grandmother. As a child, she took ballet classes in Dalston. After completing her A-levels at City and Islington College, she went on to study for a degree in contemporary dance at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in Leeds, while working as a hip-hop dancer at the nightclub LoveDough. She then studied for an MA in theatre directing at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design and took various part-time jobs as a sales assistant at Agent Provocateur, a singer in a burlesque cabaret, a bartender, a life model, and a magician's assistant.

2007–2008: Career beginnings

Faith's first foray into music began when she mimicked famous soul and jazz singers including Etta James and Billie Holiday, whom she admires and cites as influences for her own work. She met her managers Jamie Binns and Christian Wåhlberg of Lateral Management in 2007. Binns had been tipped off by the producer Peanut, a client who had recently worked with Faith in his studio and been impressed. He met up with Faith shortly afterwards and was "completely blown away", later saying, "I wasn't sure what this girl was going to do – she was an actress and a singer – but there was just something about her in that artistic realness that when I came out of the meeting I called Christian and said, 'We have to do something with this girl!'"
During her time at college, Faith worked in a pub where the manager asked her to front his band, which they later called Paloma and the Penetrators. During a performance with the band at a cabaret show, she was scouted by an A&R man from Epic Records, who invited her to sing for the manager of the label. 20 minutes into the audition, she asked the manager to turn his phone off; when he refused, she walked out. The manager later called her and offered her a contract, claiming that he had seen many acts since their meeting but none had been as memorable as her. She turned down an opportunity to join Amy Winehouse's band in order to write and perform her own songs. Her first recognised work was the song "It's Christmas (and I Hate You)", which she recorded as a duet with Josh Weller in 2008.

2009–2013: Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful? and Fall to Grace

In June 2009, Faith released her debut single "Stone Cold Sober×Stone Cold Sober12 June 2009 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Stone Cold Sober (radio edit)2:572Stone Cold Sober (Cicada remix)6:403Stone Cold Sober (Cicada ’83 Dub)5:404Stone Cold Sober (Blunt Laser remix)4:04", which reached number 17 on the UK singles chart. Her second single, "New York×New York4 September 2009 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1New York3:412Luv Ya2:51", was released in September 2009, charting at number 15 in the UK. It was later re-released as an updated version featuring rapper Ghostface Killah. In September 2009, she released her debut album, Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?×Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?24 September 2009 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Stone Cold Sober2:542Smoke & Mirrors3:063Broken Doll4:074Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?4:355Upside Down3:096Romance Is Dead3:047New York3:398Stargazer3:459My Legs Are Weak4:4810Play On4:04, for which she wrote or co-wrote all of the songs in the UK, Sweden and America. It debuted at number 14 on the UK Albums Chart and later peaked at number nine, remaining in the chart for 16 weeks. and becoming BBC Radio 2's "Album of the Week" from 19 September 2009. She released her third single, the album's title track in December 2009. The song peaked at number 64 in the UK. In the same year, Faith appeared as a vocalist on Basement Jaxx's Scars album and American hip-hop artist MF Doom's album, Born Like This.

In March 2010, Faith released her fourth single "Upside Down×Upside Down12 March 2010 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Upside Down3:112Technicolour3:00", which reached number 55 in the UK. To promote the album, she embarked on her first headlining tour of the UK and Ireland commencing in March. The Times described the tour as being "full of theatrical artifice, but based on the rock-solid foundation of [Faith]'s sensational singing voice and a personality that sparkled like a rough diamond". She performed a live set for the BBC's Radio 2 Introduces... and gave an interview to host Dermot O'Leary. Faith performed at numerous festivals throughout that summer, including T4 on the Beach, the Cheltenham Jazz Festival and the 2010 iTunes Festival. In May 2010, Faith featured on the theme song "Keep Moving" to the 2010 British film 4.3.2.1, alongside Adam Deacon and Bashy. In October 2010, Faith released "Smoke & Mirrors×Smoke & Mirrors29 October 2010 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Smoke and Mirrors3:082Smoke and Mirrors (Widower remix)6:043Smoke and Mirrors (Pete Phantom remix)5:494Smoke and Mirrors (True Tiger remix)4:17" as the final single from her debut album.
In January 2011, Faith was nominated for British Female Solo Artist at the 2011 BRIT Awards, where she also performed "Forget You" alongside Cee Lo Green. She appeared on the charity single "Hard Times" with Plan B and Elton John in May 2011. In May 2012, Faith released her second studio album Fall to Grace×Fall to Grace28 May 2012 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracks1Picking Up the Pieces4:05230 Minute Love Affair3:193Black & Blue4:024Just Be4:385Let Me Down Easy2:486Blood, Sweat & Tears4:187Beauty of the End3:228When You’re Gone4:169Agony3:1210Let Your Love Walk In4:2511Freedom3:2012Streets of Glory3:2213Never Tear Us Apart3:05. She enlisted record producers Nellee Hooper and Jake Gosling to work with her on the project. The album charted at number two on the UK Albums Chart. The album's first single "Picking Up the Pieces×Picking Up the Pieces20 April 2012 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Picking Up the Pieces (radio edit)3:40" reached number seven on the UK singles chart, becoming Faith's first top-ten single. In May 2012, Faith joined The Voice UK as one of four guest mentors. She worked with coach Danny O'Donoghue during the battle rounds phase of the competition and also performed "Picking Up the Pieces" during the results show.
In August 2012, Faith released "30 Minute Love Affair×30 Minute Love Affair10 August 2012 · EP · RemixSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks130 Minute Love Affair3:20230 Minute Love Affair (M‐Factor remix) (radio edit)3:07330 Minute Love Affair (DC Breaks remix)4:25430 Minute Love Affair (Hostage remix)3:28" as the second single from Fall to Grace. She recorded a version of INXS's "Never Tear Us Apart×Never Tear Us Apart21 September 2012 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Never Tear Us Apart3:052Never Tear Us Apart (orchestral version)3:05" for a John Lewis advertisement, which began airing on television from September 2012. It was later included on the album as a single. Faith released "Just Be×Just Be14 December 2012 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Just Be4:382Just Be (Shy FX & B.Traits mix)4:363Just Be (Full Intention remix)5:214Just Be (Distance remix)4:33" as the fourth single from the album on in December 2012. She performed the track on Later... with Jools Holland. In early 2013, Faith embarked on a headline UK and Ireland tour in support of the album. She received two nominations at the 2013 BRIT Awards; for Best Female and for Best British Album for Fall to Grace. The album has been certified double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry for sales in excess of 700,000 copies.

2014–2021: A Perfect Contradiction, The Architect and Infinite Things

In January 2013, Faith revealed that she had begun to write her third studio album during her time in the US. Later that year, she headlined the Evolution Festival in Newcastle upon Tyne. In March 2014, Faith's third album A Perfect Contradiction×A Perfect Contradiction10 March 2014 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Can't Rely on You3:152Mouth to Mouth4:233Take Me3:104Only Love Can Hurt Like This3:525Other Woman3:086Taste My Own Tears3:027Trouble With My Baby3:008The Bigger You Love (The Harder You Fall)3:019Impossible Heart4:3110Love Only Leaves You Lonely4:3111It's the Not Knowing3:2912Beauty Remains3:3613Ready for the Good Life3:2514Leave While I'm Not Looking3:5315Changing3:16 was released. It became her fastest-selling album to date, debuting at number two in the UK and receiving a double platinum certification. The lead single "Can't Rely on You" produced by Pharrell Williams, became her second top-ten single in the UK. The album's second single "Only Love Can Hurt Like This×Only Love Can Hurt Like This11 May 2014 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Only Love Can Hurt Like This (MS MR remix)3:342Only Love Can Hurt Like This (Adam Turner remix)6:53", written by Diane Warren, became her most successful single to date, reaching number six in the UK, number one in Australia and number three in New Zealand. After the success of the single, the album reached a new peak of number four in Australia. The album's third single, "Trouble with My Baby" was released in August 2014.
In September 2014, British drum and bass duo Sigma released their single "Changing×Changing14 September 2014 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Changing3:11", featuring vocals from Faith. It debuted at number one in the UK, becoming her first UK number one single. In November 2014, a repackaged "Outsider's Edition" of her third album was released featuring four new songs including the single "Ready for the Good Life×Ready for the Good Life9 November 2014 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Ready for the Good Life3:25". The same month, Faith joined the charity group Band Aid 30 along with other British and Irish pop acts, recording a new version of the track "Do They Know It's Christmas?" to raise money for the 2014 Ebola crisis in West Africa. At the 2015 Brit Awards, Faith won the award for British Female Solo Artist, becoming her first win.
In June 2015, Faith confirmed that she had started the process of creating her fourth studio album. She made reference to Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin as inspirations for the record. In August 2015, it was announced that Faith would become a coach on The Voice UK. She also launched her own management and publishing company.
In August 2017, Faith returned with the lead single "Crybaby×Crybaby31 August 2017 · EPSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 3 tracks1Crybaby3:542Crybaby (Blonde remix)3:493Crybaby (Todd Edwards remix)3:30" from her fourth album entitled The Architect×The Architect17 November 2017 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Evolution1:042The Architect3:253Guilty4:194Crybaby3:545I’ll Be Gentle4:156Politics of Hope0:547Kings and Queens3:518Surrender3:339Warrior3:4410Til I’m Done3:4411Lost and Lonely3:4112Still Around3:4713Pawns0:5114WW33:1015Love Me as I Am4:31. The album was later released in November, debuting at number one on the UK Albums Chart, becoming Faith's first UK chart-topping album. Three further singles from the album have been released: "Guilty×Guilty26 October 2017 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Guilty4:19", "'Til I'm Done" and "Warrior". In February 2018, Faith released a collaboration with DJ Sigala, "Lullaby×Lullaby23 February 2018 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Lullaby3:24", which charted at number six in the UK, becoming her fourth top-ten single as a lead artist and fifth overall. The following month, Faith covered the 1960s song "Make Your Own Kind of Music×Make Your Own Kind of Music22 February 2018 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Make Your Own Kind of Music2:44" by Mama Cass. It featured in a TV commercial by Škoda that was heavily played throughout the year, causing the track to chart at number 28 in the UK. In November 2018, Faith released a re-issue "Zeitgeist Edition" of The Architect, featuring six new songs including "Make Your Own Kind of Music", "Lullaby" and "Loyal×Loyal12 October 2018 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Loyal3:40".
In 2020, Faith reprised her role as a coach on The Voice UK's children's counterpart, The Voice Kids for its fourth series. In August 2020, the title of her fifth studio album was announced as Infinite Things×Infinite Things13 November 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracks1Supernatural3:342Monster3:113Gold3:584Falling Down3:355Infinite Things4:486If This Is Goodbye4:447Better Than This3:288Me Time3:189If Loving You Was Easy3:4510Beautiful & Damned2:3711I’d Die for You4:0112Living With a Stranger3:2713Last Night on Earth2:49.

2023–present: The Glorification of Sadness and touring

In October 2023, Faith announced that "How You Leave a Man×How You Leave a Man11 October 2023 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1How You Leave a Man3:34", the lead single from her sixth album, would be released on 11 October. With the release, she announced a nationwide tour to would begin in April 2024; the album, The Glorification of Sadness×The Glorification of Sadness16 February 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 17 tracks1Sweatpants3:312Pressure3:443God in a Dress3:424How You Leave a Man3:345There’s Nothing More Human Than Failure1:196Bad Woman2:457Cry on the Dance Floor4:138Say My Name2:569Let It Ride3:2110The Big Bang Ending0:4211Eat Shit and Die3:1212Divorce4:2113Hate When You’re Happy3:5314Enjoy Yourself2:5315I Am Enough4:0616Mirror to Mirror0:3717Already Broken4:05, was released on 16 February 2024. Faith announced the album is inspired by the separation of her long-term relationship.
On 31 January 2024, it was announced that Faith would be a headline performance at Camp Bestival at Weston Park in Shropshire in August 2024. On 28 January 2025 Faith launched her first podcast "Mad, Sad & Bad".

Acting career

In 2007, Faith appeared in an episode of the BBC police drama HolbyBlue portraying a thief. She was cast as Andrea in St Trinian's in 2007. Faith was also cast in Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus as Sally, the girlfriend of the Devil (played by Tom Waits) in 2009. She appeared in the horror film Dread as Clara Thornhill. She later starred in the Channel 4 series Coming Up and the short film A Nice Touch. Of getting the part, she stated: "I don't think they even knew I was an actress. I went to an audition and they said that they liked my interpretation of the character and I said, 'I'm just being myself'." In 2013, she appeared as cabaret performer Georgia, in a television adaptation of P. G. Wodehouse's Blandings (episode "The Crime Wave at Blandings") on the BBC. In 2015 she appeared as herself in Paolo Sorrentino's Youth. Later that year, Faith also appeared as Tinker Bell in the TV film Peter & Wendy, based on J. M. Barrie's novel Peter Pan.
In 2018, Faith was cast as the lead villainess in the Epix series Pennyworth, a Batman prequel. She also voices Portia the goth poodle on 101 Dalmatian Street.

Other works

In 2016, Faith became a judge on The Voice UK. She remained on the panel for one series, owing to her pregnancy. She returned to the show in 2020 to judge its spin-off series The Voice Kids UK. In 2024, Faith released MILF, a memoir focusing on motherhood and womanhood. It became a Sunday Times Bestseller. In May 2025, Faith was announced as a contestant on the first series of The Celebrity Traitors. She was the first contestant to be "murdered", in episode two after Alan Carr "murdered" her in plain sight.

Artistry

Faith is known for her retro and eccentric style. She is a mezzo-soprano. Her music often blends soul and elements of jazz and gospel; she has been consequently compared to Amy Winehouse, Adele and Duffy.

Personal life

During an episode of The Voice UK, Faith said she once read an article that called music artist KT Tunstall old despite being only 27 at the time. As she was 27 herself at the time, Faith felt pressure to lie about her age when trying to acquire a record deal, and claimed to be 23. She later admitted to lying about her age, saying, "I want to be judged for my music, not my age", and would frequently change her age on Wikipedia until a fan provided her birth certificate.
Faith married New Zealand chef Rian Haynes in 2005; they separated after eight months and were divorced in 2009. She later said of the marriage: "It was just a young, frivolous thing. We were in our early twenties and we did something quickly and realised it was a mistake. But we're still close. I am still friends with him. All my other relationships were the ones that screwed me up, not that one!"
In August 2016, it was revealed that Faith was expecting her first child with long-term boyfriend Leyman Lahcine. She gave birth to a daughter in December 2016, and had a second daughter in February 2021. In an October 2023 interview with The Independent, she stated that their 10-year relationship had ended, but would not confirm that they had been married. Faith gave birth to her third child, a son with music venue director Stevie Thomas, in March 2026.

Politics

In March 2024, Faith signed an Oxfam letter calling for an end to UK arms exports to Israel. On 13 December 2024, Faith held a benefit concert alongside Paul Weller, Kneecap, Primal Scream, Liam Bailey and Lowkey, which raised more than £115,000 for Medical Aid for Palestinians. In March 2025, Faith gave a speech at a protest against the March 2025 Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, saying: "I know that Israel has violated every ceasefire agreement it has ever signed. But even with that knowledge, after months of watching this genocide, I wasn't prepared for the new depths of brutality that Israel has descended to."