Liam Payne could have been successful independent artist after label drop, says Kelli-Leigh

Grammy nominated writer and musician Kelli-Leigh has addressed the change she is pushing for surrounding musicians and their wellbeing and believes Liam Payne could have been a successful solo artist

Liam Payne could have been a successful independent musician, says Grammy nominated Kelli-Leigh.

The former One Direction singer tragically fell to his death aged 31 last week, falling from the balcony of his third floor hotel room in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The star died after suffering multiple traumas leading to an "internal and external haemorrhage". Prior to his sad death, Liam was reportedly dropped from his record label, Universal due to alleged concerns his new music wouldn't appeal to his fan base.

However, singe and Grammy Award nominated songwriter, Kelli-Leigh who has found success as an independent musician believes that the dad-of-one could have gone on and shone without the backing of a major label, given his previous success. "He could have taken the move and done it independent. I think that's sometimes the thing, people say 'Oh that wouldn't work and this wouldn't work,' sometimes they're right but sometimes they're so wrong and they're just following what is the moment.

"A lot of people want something that is the moment and someone puts out something new and goes 'F**k it, I'm going to do what I want to do' and that blows up and people go 'We need one of those!', I just believe, if you really love a record, die on that sword – put it out and believe in it, you'll be proud of it. I know people who have been on labels and haven't put anything out for ages and then the label wasn't sure and kept changing the thing and in the end they got dropped.

"That's frustrating, I think it's better to keep moving!" But Kelli-Leigh, 39, admits that being an independent artist does come with its downfalls, admitting: "It's so much harder to break through the noise and break through what signed artists are getting. Signed artists will get the monopoly of playlisting, marketing and support from TikTok, where as an independent artist, it's a lot harder to cut through that noise."

This is something that Kelli-Leigh knows all too well. Despite being the voice on some of the biggest hits including I Got U with Duke Dumont, More Than Friends with Wirral-born James Hype. But while she was given a credit on the track with Hype – this hasn't always been the case for the pop and dance singer. "I was definitely having internal battles," Kelli-Leigh said on dealing with being "the voice" and having no credits.

She went on to add: "It was the lockdown which kind of pushed me over the edge. It really dawned on me just how much I'd done and achieved in the business and the lack of support for me as an artist but seeing male counter-parts thriving and growing and me not being anywhere but known as just the voice and is kind of a legend in the business now because she's sung all these records and labels would just put me with their new signed artists."

Kelli-Leigh found herself being unable to work with bigger names on labels as they would often find themselves working with bigger and more publicised vocalists. "You kind of see a pattern and go 'Oh, hold on, this is misogyny and wrapped in a little but of racism' because the signed vocal artists in dance weren't necessarily women of colour."

Despite this, Kelli-Leigh was left overjoyed this year when her hit Unconditional was played on Radio One and was in the C-list for three weeks which she said was "amazing". But after ten years of pushing, Kelli-Leigh admits its now time to "support and champion" her music. "It's been hard, there have been moments where I've felt alone and not good enough," she said. The lack of support left her feeling she had something wrong with her, or wasn't "cool enough" for the business. Now, Kelli-Leigh has invested in her own label after Unconditional wasn't picked up by a label after initially sending it around.

However, one thing she has noticed is the large amount of musicians having burnout and breakdowns due to the increased demand from music bosses, whether it be touring, releasing a new album every year or on a constant promotional tour. Kelli-Leigh is now on the board for the FAC [Featured Artists Coalition], alongside the likes of Imogen Heap, which is ran for artists by artists.

The organisation fights for artists rights as there was previously no space for artists to turn to when they needed help. "It's been really interesting learning about what legislation is going on behind the scenes," Kelli-Leigh said. She added: "I'm really glad that artists are having a bit of a voice in the room because there were some people definitely making decisions who weren't too bothered about the artist experience, it was more about the bottom line of it."

Follow Mirror Celebs onTikTok,Snapchat,Instagram,Twitter,Facebook,YouTubeandThreads.