Lola Young has said “women get so much scrutiny and hate” while addressing criticism she has received online, adding: “People will comment on things they would never comment about a man.”
The 25-year-old shot to international fame in 2024 with the release of her breakthrough single, Messy, which reached number one on the UK singles chart and led to her first Grammy win.
Online criticism and the manosphere
Young has experienced a turbulent period in the public eye and has spoken openly about the impact of relentless online criticism while navigating her mental health struggles and experiences with addiction.
In an interview with British Vogue, the star said: “People will comment on things they would never comment about a man.
“That’s just the truth. Women get so much scrutiny and they get so much hate, and half of the time (it’s from) little men, incels. That’s what it is.”
Young also discussed the manosphere – an online network of communities focused on men’s issues often associated with anti-feminist views and misogyny.
Describing the online culture as “appalling”, she added: “It’s actually disgusting. There is such a divide and that is pushed between each algorithm.”
Asked whether she was referring to the divide between men and women, she said: “Yeah, it creates a separation that means that men don’t actually want to see what feminism is truly about because they think it’s about hairy underarms and Bonnie Blue.”
Body standards and internal battles
“I can only speak for myself and what I go through as a woman,” she added.
“With the rise of social media, and also just constant changes in body standards, with that comes a lot of internal battles.”
Young, who has received online comments about her appearance, previously shared a video addressing people who said her body gave them confidence.
“I made a video a long time ago about the same kind of thing; that I didn’t really like when other women or other people said that I made them feel confident in their body,” she said.
“Because I don’t need to give you confidence.
“But then I love the fact that I give people confidence to wear what they want, to be who they want to be.
“We have to live and die in our bodies, and to be concerned about things like our weight or how we look? There’s literally no point. We’re stuck with it.”
Young also told the magazine she tries to pay little attention to female body standards, adding: “I don’t want to concern myself.
“Women have enough issues to worry about. We need a f****** pay rise, let alone that.”
Burnout and recovery
The singer cancelled a string of shows after she collapsed on stage in September 2025 while performing at the All Things Go music festival at Forest Hills Stadium in New York.
Following the incident, Young told fans she was “going away for a while” to “come back stronger” and checked herself into a holistic treatment facility for two months.
The pop star, who returned to the stage in February 2026, told the magazine she had felt “severely burned out” during this period.
“I was hoping that things would change. I wasn’t quite in the space,” she said.
“A lot of things were going on for me personally. I was working but I also was self-sabotaging and that is not a good combination.
“Recovery isn’t linear. It’s a non-stop journey.”
