Jade LeMac Is The Future of Sapphic Pop & It Sounds Great
The indie singer-songwriter became a rising star with her viral sapphic hit “Constellations” and in doing so became the representation she needed growing up.
Featured image by Bre Johnson (@_bre_johnson)
It’s not uncommon for Jade LeMac’s fans to bare their hearts and souls to the singer. To pull her aside or message her, thanking the musician for helping them not only to come out, but to better understand their identity. For any queer artist, that kind of connection is a source of joy. For LeMac, it’s also a reminder of her own journey. She remembers being that young queer person who was searching for answers, only to have her world opened up by another queer artist when she watched Hayley Kiyoko’s “Girls Like Girls” video. “[It] was life-changing for me,” LeMac tells GO. Now, LeMac has become that source of inspiration for a new generation of queer fans, offering the same sense of visibility and possibility that once meant so much to her.
“I was yearning for that, and now I’m that for other people, so it’s definitely a full circle moment,” she says. “The most rewarding part of this job is being able to be the person young me needed. I remember being 12 or 13 and looking for somebody who understood the way I felt and thought. Now, being able to write my own songs and release them and watch people relate to them on such a deep level, it’s all that I’ve wanted.”
But that’s just one of many dreams the 22-year-old singer has already begun to fulfill. GO sat down with LeMac on the eve of her performance at this year’s Governors Ball, where she’ll take the stage alongside artists including KATSEYE, Lorde, Kali Uchis, and King Princess. It’s a fitting milestone for a musician in the midst of a rise that can only be described as meteoric.
The Vancouver-based singer began her career singing outside her mother’s clothing store in Victoria, British Columbia, hoping her voice would be the siren song that called customers into the shop. It’s adorable, but it also speaks to a wild, innate confidence in her gift and her desire to share it with the world—something that would help propel her career.
From there, she took her show global on TikTok, where she amassed 1.7 million followers. But it was her track “Constellations”—an aching and sensual sapphic indie-pop song—that, well, rocketed her to the next level of her career, particularly when the track was picked up for the soundtrack of Tubi’s 2024 movie Sidelined: The QB and Me and Netflix’s My Life with the Walter Boys.
The single went gold in the U.S. and platinum in Canada. Her recognition has only grown since. She earned an Outstanding Breakthrough Music Artist nomination at the 2024 GLAAD Media Awards, boasts 5.8 million monthly listeners on Spotify, has toured alongside Maren Morris, and is set to embark on a tour with Hilary Duff this summer.
But the more LeMac climbs the charts, plays increasingly larger and more impressive venues, and becomes a role model for growing numbers of young queer fans, the more she’s trying to understand who she is herself.
LeMac has always known that she wanted to sing and write music, and luckily, she also knew that her family would support that dream. “Although no one in my family is necessarily musical, everyone always loved music itself, and I think that really shaped the way I viewed music and the way it affects people,” she recalls. When she came out, they were just as supportive, and perhaps because she has been free to express herself fully, her music is rooted in her queerness.
“I think being a woman, and a woman who identifies as part of the LGBTQ+ community, has largely impacted my work,” says LeMac. “It is a big part of who I am and my experiences growing up, which, at the end of the day, [have] made me who I am today. Without all the hardships I’ve been through, I doubt I would have written half the songs I have.”
It’s the intimacy and authenticity of her music—along with LeMac’s arresting and effortlessly emotive voice—that has drawn fans to her work. Arguably, her vulnerability is her superpower as an artist. “Constellations” invites listeners into her experience with a passionate and fleeting connection with a lover. “Running Home” reveals how she reassures a lover of her endless devotion. And “Car Accident” lays bare the pain and terror of a toxic and tumultuous love story.
That kind of intimacy pulls in her fandom, and when she is on stage, that exchange of energy is a two-way street for the artist. “It’s crazy, because it reminds me how much music can impact people,” says LeMac. “How it can bring people together, like, ‘Oh my God, you relate to lyrics I wrote?’ It’s unbelievable to see. It makes me feel emotional, to be honest, especially when it’s a very vulnerable song.”
But there are still some things LeMac can’t share with her audience. “It’s funny, there are certain things that I can write about really easily and certain things I can’t bring myself to write about.” And sometimes, the emotions are just too big for the artist. “I can write about…heartbreak, being sad, or loving someone…but if you tell me to write a song about my mom, I can’t do it. I’ve been training for years, [but], because I love her so much…that’s like too emotional, it’s too much…and she hates me for it, because she’s like, ‘Write me a damn song,’” jokes LeMac.
While a song about her mother may not be on the immediate horizon, LeMac does have big plans for what she wants to do next as an artist, and it involves a sonic evolution. She’s actively working on music that she is very excited about, and it will see her continue to grow as an artist. “I’m just being more honest with myself [about] what I want to be doing when making music, creatively,” says LeMac, explaining that her sound is becoming more heavily influenced by R&B and hip-hop. “Kind of like trap beats up in there, and this darker kind of stuff. I’m really excited about doing a bit of a pivot.”
While some artists might fear changing direction like this after finding so much success so quickly, for the girl who kicked off her career by performing outside her mother’s store, it’s a reminder that her belief in following her own instincts and her craft remains unabated.
As her music evolves, so too does her relationship with her audience and the queer community that has embraced her—as well as what pride in her own identity means. “Growing up, I had very [accepting] family and friends… but being more of a public figure and having people look—not even just like look up to me, but just like having eyes on me all the time—I think it’s something that I definitely want to make sure I talk about openly and proudly.”
For LeMac, that sense of visibility isn’t just about being on stage. And she has long been part of queer community spaces, but she admits she has yet to experience one of its biggest rites of passage herself. “I am always gone for all the Pride parades and stuff like that. I’ve never been to one. How dare I? Because I’m always gone…it’s really messed up,” she confesses. But she has plans to celebrate in her own way: “Being happy with my girlfriend…just being happy, being prideful.”
And truly, what better way is there to celebrate Pride than by living her best life—loudly, proudly, and with unapologetic queer love?
