A decade ago today, Jorja Smith quietly changed the landscape of British music with the release of her debut single “Blue Lights.”
The song introduced a voice unlike any other and quickly grew into a defining record of its time, reflecting the lived realities of young people in the UK. Written while Jorja was still in her teens, the track offered a stark, empathetic snapshot of everyday tension — touching on policing, racial bias and the emotional strain of growing up under watchful eyes. I
ts plainspoken honesty struck a powerful chord, turning “Blue Lights” into a generational marker and confirming Jorja as one of the most important artists of her era.
To mark ten years since the song first emerged, Jorja Smith has released Demo Dump ’16, a short collection of three demo recordings originally shared on SoundCloud. Blue Lights was first uploaded to the platform on 19 January 2016, and this anniversary release revisits that moment by unveiling three raw, unfinished tracks from the same period — presented exactly as they were made, with no polish or revision.