The BRIT Awards have hosted countless sensational performances since 1977, from Michael Jackson’s ethereal 1996 “Earth Song” to Dave’s hard-hitting 2020 statement piece, “Black.” But when Paloma Faith took to the BRIT stage in 2015, she totally stole the show, performing her recent single, “Only Love Can Hurt Like This,” as it was well on its way to becoming the greatest hit single of her career.
Dazzling the BRITs audience in a glittered black ball gown, black painted hands, and her blonde hair slicked back, Paloma’s seductively dark stage design lays all the power in her striking voice as she performs the track spot-on to the original studio recording. This official performance video has now gone viral with a legendary 108 million YouTube views to date.
The Stoke Newington-born singer featured “Only Love Can Hurt Like This” on her third studio album, 2014’s “A Perfect Contradiction,” the single only hitting #6 in the UK but peaking at #1 in Australia, while the album claimed the #2 spot in the UK albums charts.
Contrary to Paloma’s exceptional performances making this track appear to be pulled straight from her heart, the song was, in fact, written by the 90s-famous Californian songwriter Diane Warren, whose back catalogue of hits stretches from Whitney Houston to Cher and Britney Spears.
The fine blend of big-band blues, jazz, and pop on “Only Love Can Hurt Like This” is a classic trademark of Paloma’s music, who had broken into the spotlight in 2009 following the release of her debut record, “Do You Want The Truth Or Something Beautiful?” and its hit singles “Stone Cold Sober” and “New York.”
Paloma later performed as part of Band Aid 30 for the 2014 rendition of “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, raising funds for the West Africa Ebola crisis, alongside appearing on countless other charity singles, including a cover of Oasis’ “Stop Crying Your Heart Out” for Children in Need.
“Only Love Can Hurt Like This” was pulled back into the spotlight in 2022 after going viral on TikTok. But fans new and old are still left breathless by this BRITs performance, with one pointing out, “She didn’t need the dancers. Her voice and that rain was enough to carry that amazing performance,” and another realizing, “This song is the definition of ‘when you’re happy you enjoy the music, when you’re sad you understand the lyrics.’”
If you would like to hear more from this talented artist, you can subscribe to her YouTube Channel for more incredible music. Follow her journey on Facebook and stay updated with her latest projects on Instagram. For more information, visit her official website.