2010–2011: The X Factor '' live in Glasgow on 1 April 2011|alt=Red-haired Lloyd singing with her eyes closed while holding a microphone Lloyd had previously performed at holiday camps, saying that she had received a mixed reaction to her music; but she was a big hit with
The X Factor judges at the time. She auditioned singing the
Keri Hilson version of "
Turn My Swag On" by American rapper
Soulja Boy. At bootcamp, she sang a rap version of "
Viva La Vida". She also performed "
Cooler than Me" at the judges' houses, but suffered from
tonsillitis and was unable to complete the song. Lloyd sang a rendition of "
Just Be Good to Me" in the first of the live shows. In the second live show, she performed "
Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)"; she sang a mashup of "
No Diggity" and "
Shout" in the third live show. In the fourth, she performed "
Stay", the first time Lloyd did not rap in her performance and Cowell called it "the performance of the series". In the fifth week, Lloyd sang "
Empire State of Mind", but the judges stated that, after the previous week, they were disappointed. However, they agreed that she redeemed herself with her rendition of "
Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" mixed with "
Mockingbird" by
Elton John and
Eminem, respectively, in the sixth week. In the seventh week, Lloyd was in the bottom two with
Paije Richardson for the first time after her rendition of "
Imagine", although she was convinced to be kept after singing "Stay"; however, Cowell, Cole, and Walsh all saved her in the final showdown. In the following week, she performed "
Girlfriend", followed by "
Walk This Way". Both performances were credited by the judges, and Lloyd was saved by the public vote the following night, securing her position in the semifinal. In the semifinal, Lloyd performed "
Nothin' on You" and "
Love the Way You Lie"; she was in the bottom two with
Mary Byrne. She was saved by the judges again, and put through to the final. In the final, she performed a mashup of "
The Clapping Song" and "
Get Ur Freak On", followed by a duet with
will.i.am, a mashup of "
Where Is the Love?" and "
I Gotta Feeling". Lloyd was then became the thirteenth contestant eliminated. From February 2011 to April, Lloyd and nine other contestants from the series participated in the X Factor Live Tour.
2011–2012: Sticks and Stones After the finale of the seventh series of
The X Factor, it was announced that Lloyd had been signed to
Syco Music. and producers
RedOne, Johnny Powers, and
the Runners. On 28 July 2011, Lloyd previewed five tracks from the album during a
UStream session, including singles featuring
Busta Rhymes,
Mike Posner,
Ghetts, Mic Righteous, and
Dot Rotten. Lloyd's debut single, "
Swagger Jagger", was released in July 2011. It entered at number one on the
UK Singles Chart, with sales exceeding 303,000 copies in Britain. In the Republic of Ireland, the single charted at number two on the
Irish Singles Chart, while it debuted at number 79 on the
Mega Top 100 in the Netherlands. After a performance during the finals of
So You Think You Can Dance, the song moved up the chart to number 60. Lloyd released her debut studio album,
Sticks + Stones, on 4 November. It entered the
UK Albums Chart at number 4, while peaking at number seven in Ireland. The album sold 55,668 copies in its opening week. The second single "
With Ur Love", featuring American singer
Mike Posner, debuted on the
UK Singles Chart at number four with first-week sales of 74,030 copies. The third single of
Sticks + Stones, "
Want U Back", featuring American rapper
Astro, debuted at number 56, and rose 30 places to number 26 with sales of 9,730. in 2012 In November, Lloyd announced her debut headlining UK tour, the Sticks and Stones Tour, which took place in March and April 2012. On 13 December, a music video for "Dub on the Track", featuring underground artists Mic Righteous, Dot Rotten, and
Ghetts, who also all appear in the accompanying video, was premiered on
SBTV. In December, two more dates were added, due to popular demand for tickets. Same month, Lloyd signed a record deal with
L.A. Reid to
Epic Records in the United States; a solo version of "Want U Back" was confirmed as Lloyd's debut single in the US and the first one from the American and Australian release of
Sticks and Stones. The song was released in May 2012, debuting at number 75 on the US
Billboard Hot 100 chart before rising to number 12. It also peaked at number 9 on the US
Billboard Pop Songs, number 5 on Digital Songs, number 39 on the
Hot 100 Airplay, and number 23 on Adult Pop Songs. In Canada, it debuted at number 95 on the
Canadian Hot 100 chart and peaked at number 11. As of February 2013, the track has sold over 2,000,000 copies in the US, and almost 3,000,000 copies worldwide. The second US single, "
Oath", featuring American rapper
Becky G, was released in October. However, it failed to match its predecessor's success, peaking at number 73 in the US
Billboard Hot 100. The American and Australian versions of
Sticks and Stones were released on 2 October 2012, through Epic Records. The edition peaked at number nine in the US, selling 31,000 copies in its opening week. In Australia, the album reached number thirty. In October 2012, Lloyd supported American band
Hot Chelle Rae on the Australian leg of their Whatever World Tour.
2013–2015: ''Sorry I'm Late'' and hiatus |alt=Lloyd standing with a blue background behind her, holding a microphone with both hands staring to the right Months after the release of
Sticks + Stones, Lloyd confirmed that recording had begun for her second studio album, with new songwriters and producers such as
Beth Ditto and
Tove Lo. In January 2013, she announced that she would guest-star on American musical sitcom
Big Time Rush. In April, she announced that she would collaborate with American singer
Ne-Yo on "It's All Good", premiered in June of that year. In November, during an interview with American radio host
Larry King, Lloyd confirmed that she had left Syco Music after she and Cowell disagreed about her career path in music. She also revealed that the album, originally due for release in November, was pushed back until early 2014, despite the record being done. Lloyd announced that her tour
I Wish Tour would take place in the fall of 2013 and that girl group
Fifth Harmony would serve as the opening act. In May 2014, Lloyd was featured on "
Really Don't Care", the fourth single off American singer
Demi Lovato's fourth album
Demi. It peaked at numbers 1 and 98 on the US Dance and
Billboard Hot 100 charts, respectively. Lloyd's second studio album, ''
Sorry I'm Late, was released on 24 May 2014. It peaked on the US Billboard'' 200 chart at number 12, with 17,000 copies sold in its first week. In Europe, the album peaked at number 58 on the
Irish Albums Chart, while it debuted at number 21 on the
UK Albums Chart. Its lead single, "
I Wish", featuring American rapper
T.I., debuted within the US on the US
Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart at number 16. It also charted on the
ARIA Singles Chart at number 40 and on New Zealand at number 16. The second single, "
Sirens", peaked on the US
Pop Digital Songs chart at number 48. The song also charted on the
UK Singles Chart at number 41. The album sold 41,000 copies in the US as of December 2014.
2016–present: Label change and single releases Lloyd broke her silence in March 2016 by posting a video on her social media pages. In the video, Lloyd states: "I just want to say thank you so much for being so patient. It's been a while but it's definitely worth the wait and I can't wait for everybody to hear it." She also revealed in an interview with New You Media that her third album is almost finished. On 15 July 2016, Lloyd teased the release of her new song "
Activated" on social media; the song was premiered a week later. In May 2017, Lloyd announced that she had signed a record deal with Ie:music. The following year, she was the featured vocalist on the track "4U" by Swedish producer Joakim Molitor. On 19 October, Lloyd released the single "
None of My Business" along with the music video. A year later, she released the single "
M.I.A", which would be the lead single of her upcoming third studio album. On 24 April 2020, Lloyd premiered the single "
Lost" alongside a music video. In 2025, she released two singles: "Head Down" on 17 January alongside a music video; "Green Light" on 4 April. Lloyd collaborated with Fuzion on "Sweet Devotion" in 2026. ==Artistry==