Paloma Faith announces that she’s pregnant with her first child

The pop star announced that she won't be returning to The Voice or releasing her album this year
Big news: Paloma Faith and Leyman Lahcine are expecting their first child together
Dave Benett
Jennifer Ruby22 August 2016
The Weekender

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Singer Paloma Faith has announced that she’s pregnant with her first child.

The pop star and former Voice coach revealed that she is expecting a baby with other half Leyman Lahcine on Monday.

Confirming the news on her Twitter account, the 35-year-old said that she would be taking ‘a short while off’ before releasing her fourth album.

“I am so delighted to tell you I am going to take a short while off to have a baby,” she wrote.

"I have spent my whole life wanting to be a mother and now the time has come for me to do so. I feel so lucky.”

Faith also took the opportunity to announce that she won’t be returning for the new series of The Voice.

“This means that I won’t be involved in The Voice this year or releasing my album this year either,” she wrote.

“So while you are all patiently waiting I would like you to know that I am grateful for your continued support and patience and I hope that you will respect my new family with our privacy in a time which should be calm and without anxiety.

“I really do not want this child to be in the public eye as it won't have chosen to and I hope everyone can understand that.”

The singer added: “I am nervous and excited about being a mum and just need to be normal and low key for a while.

“Pregnancy and motherhood is a very personal thing : daunting, new and worrying at times and I don't want to add to it by having to "look" a certain way when pregnant or be photographed pregnant or with my child.

“I wasn't raised like that and I don't want my child to be. I want the baby to have the freedom of a normal life.

“When I return I will be full of energy and excited to come and sing for you again. I am passionate about my job and what I do in the public eye but consider these to be two separate things, not one in the same.”

Faith spoke about her desire to start a family back in March, saying that having a baby was more important to her than getting married.

“Leyman is my husband. You don’t need a marriage certificate,” she told the Sunday People.

“We don’t argue. We are very similar characters. We respond to things in the same way and just talk about things. If somebody says, ‘you’ve hurt me’ I say ‘I’m really sorry I didn’t mean to.’

“I’m not ever saying no to marriage... and I've wanted a baby since I was 27.”

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