If you haven’t heard her name yet, get ready. Chloe Qisha is about to become your new favourite pop girlie. After supporting Sabrina Carpenter at BST last year and being named one of BBC’s Sound of 2026 artists, the 27-year-old is getting ready to take to the stage at Isle of Wight and Reading festivals. And if you’re in her crowd, UK festival-goers, be prepared to get your flirt on. ‘I do a lot of chatting and flirting in between the songs, and the US crowds will shout stuff at me and they’ll flirt right back. I [love] that kind of energy.’
You were wearing different slogan tops each night on your US tour – were they hints of what’s to come?
They are most definitely clues. I was really particular about the outfits for this tour. Fashion can be very divisive and used in a very good way, especially for budding artists. As a consumer of music, I want to be like, ‘Oh, that’s the girl’ and I know the uniform of that person. When I think of Charli [XCX], I think of booty shorts with a tee and the sunglasses. So, for this [tour], I was like, ‘I’m going to do a graphic baby tee and chaps.’
Do you think that there’s still a stigma around pop music?
I don’t think so as much now. Especially with The Powerpuff Girls [Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan and Charli XCX] last year. They really made it into its own echelon of cool. But you will still get your annoying boy who loves ‘insert your British indie band in the 90s here’ kind of vibe. I always say you have to be a different breed of human to be a hater, because, a) who’s got the time? And b) the industry is saturated with so many artists and so many different kinds of music that fit every shade of genre, that if it’s not for you just move on.
Do you think women have to battle bigger, and often more critical, expectations when it comes to delivering a live show than their male counterparts?
They 1,000 per cent do. The bar for pop girlies is unusually high. Especially with the virality of TikTok and how big someone can become overnight these days, there’s no grace for growth. People expect Addison Rae to come out of the gate singing like Beyoncé, but then also dancing like Tate McRae and then also giving 20 years’ worth of experience all packed into one. But then, I feel like a pop boy can go on stage with the same T-shirt and denim jeans they’ve been wearing all tour and just rock out with a guitar and we’re like, ‘Yes, King, give me more.’ It’s the same with Chappell [Roan], she can’t step a hair out of line. If a man set boundaries with the paparazzi, we’d be like, ‘Yes.’ But then she does it and suddenly, she’s a diva.
Talk us through your most recent release, 'Surprise, Surprise' – what’s the story?
It’s probably one of the truest songs I’ve written. It’s about going back to a relationship you know isn’t quite right for you and maybe sometimes makes you feel a bit shit about yourself. It’s so easy to be in a bad relationship and be like, ‘Oh, it’s them,’ but then there’s a certain point where you’re like, ‘But is it me? Because I’m aware, but I keep going back, and that’s a conscious decision I make.’
One of your songs is called 'YDH', aka young, dumb and horny. Do you think there is still a shame about women openly admitting sexual desire?
I think even the word ‘horny’, when we gave it to the team they were like, ‘Wow, it’s an amazing song,’ but also, ‘Oh, we’re unsure about the word.’ And I was like, ‘But that’s exactly why I want it in the song, because people think it’s such a dirty word when really it’s not.’ Especially with women in that context, it’s seen as something so taboo. YDH is the beginning of the journey of that initial feeling when you get a crush and there’s no rhyme or reason or pop girlies is so high – there’s no logic and you just want to jump someone’s bones.
Do you have a current crush?
I have so many. I love a crush. I’m in a long-term committed relationship and have been for eight years, but I love that we’re also at the stage where we can both crush on other people.
You’ve got a bit of downtime right now before festival season kicks in. How are you spending it?
I’m unfortunately a doomscroller. I’m just at a point where I have to embrace it.
Finally, you’ve released two EPs – is there an album coming?
I would love to call it that, but I just don’t know. I’m trying to be more open to the different ways of doing music. I think there’s merit in just putting stuff out and seeing where it lands. Ultimately, as long as the music feels authentic to me and I’m proud of it, I’m happy for songs to just keep coming out. Eventually, I hope that I will look up one day and be like, ‘Ah, this is the collection of songs and this is what I’m going to call it.’
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Photographer: Emily White; Words: Lydia Venn; Stylist: Rebecca Jane Hill; Editor In Chief: Claire Hodgson; Art Director: Alex Hambis; Entertainment Editor: Alicia Lansom; Make Up: Yolanda Dohr Using Vieve Beauty; Hair: Hiroshi Matsushita Using R+Co Uki; Nails: Ami Streets @ The Wall Group Using Kure Bazaar; Stylist’s Assistant: Angel Cordova-Todd; Photo Assistant: Lucy Ranson; Production: Beverley Croucher
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