Jade Thirlwall appeared to signal relationship difficulties in a recent interview, weeks before reports emerged that her relationship with boyfriend Jordan Stephens had concluded. The former couple, who shared a home and divided their time between London and Margate, are understood to have separated earlier this year.
Stephens has since removed all photos of Thirlwall from his Instagram account, and she has similarly cleared her page of images featuring the singer. Thirlwall, 33, alluded to personal matters in an interview last month, stating she was "going through something privately."
Discussing the writing process for her upcoming second album, Thirlwall indicated that she was channeling her life experiences into new music. "Right now, I don't even know where it's heading. I'm just writing stuff. Whatever I'm going through at the minute, like privately, I'm sort of putting pen to paper," she told The Fader. She added that this phase can be "the most magical part as an artist when you're writing music."
According to The Sun, Thirlwall and Stephens remain on amicable terms, and sources close to them have expressed hope for a reconciliation. They continue to follow each other on Instagram. An insider told the publication, "Jade and Jordan had a very serious and loving relationship but recently they have had some frank discussions about their future and have decided to separate."
"It's not been an easy time but they've both been throwing themselves into work," the insider added. "Their friends adore them as a couple and are really hoping they get back together but it's still very raw at the moment."
The pair reportedly failed to mark their sixth anniversary with a social media post, a tradition they had previously maintained. Their last public appearance together was at the Brit Awards in February.
Thirlwall also attended a bandmate Perrie Edwards' wedding over the summer without Jordan. She shared photographs from a trip to Sri Lanka at the beginning of the year.
Thirlwall and Stephens initially met during lockdown through a series of virtual dates. Thirlwall previously described finding a relationship during the pandemic as a "strange" experience, noting that she had not been actively seeking a partner at the time and had been enjoying her independence. "I ended up meeting someone in lockdown which is strange… I quite enjoyed doing it that way. We had real dates and really got to know each other," she explained to Metro.
Thirlwall, who had previously ended a three-year relationship with Jed Elliott the July prior, emphasized the importance of having a supportive partner and felt she and Stephens were a "good match."
Stephens, one half of the music duo Rizzle Kicks, collaborated with Thirlwall on her debut album, "That's Showbiz Baby!" released last year. She had previously expressed reservations about dating musicians, citing past experiences, but found her collaboration with Stephens to be successful. "He's on my album; I'm on his. Jordan's on the backing vocals for Headache," Thirlwall noted.