Gabrielle has overcome her stage fright thanks to Adele and Stormzy.
The 54 -year-old singer has battled nerves on stage for over 30 years, but – after 2022 saw her support Adele, 36, at Hyde Park and join Stormzy, 30, in his video for ‘Mel Made Me Do It’ – she has continued to grow in confidence.
She told the Daily Star newspaper’s Wired column: “I was always scared to go on stage, a bit of a scaredy cat.
“Having recognition from young ‘uns like Adele and Stormzy, that’s huge for me.”
The ‘Dreams’ hitmaker acknowledged that experience has also helped, but she credited the respect of younger artists will encouraging her in a big way.
She added: “Confidence for my shows has come with age too, but if the young ‘uns don’t mind quirky Gabs, that’s great, because that’s the way I’ve always been.”
Gabrielle – who released her eighth studio album ‘A Place In Your Heart’ last week – admitted working with the ‘Hello’ megastar and ‘Vossi Bop’ chart topper wasn’t something she expected was ever on the cards.
She quipped: “I can’t even say, ‘Dreams can come true’ about being asked to support Adele, because it’s not something I could believe would ever happen.
“I didn’t think Stormzy would even know my name, so their reaction was so nice, I was super gassed.”
Next year, Gabrielle will hit the road on her first ever arena tour, which will include her biggest show to date at The O2 arena in London.
While part of her is nervous about playing “such huge venues”, she knows the experience will be “wicked”.
She said: “I can be quirky and nutty when I talk to the audience. But, as the years have gone by, I know people have come to see me do what I do.
“They’re there for my banter, as well as songs that some people say mean so much to them.”