I’ve been living with an angel... why Lola Lennox thinks mum Annie is best
HAVING sold 80 million records, won eight Brit Awards, four Grammys and a Golden Globe for her work with the Eurythmics and as a solo artist, Annie Lennox is one of Scotland’s most successful musicians.
But the star has voiced doubts about her success in another area – whether she has been a good mother.
Her daughters Lola, now 30, and Tali, 27, were born when Ms Lennox was married to her first husband, Israeli filmmaker Uri Fruchtmann, and at the height of her fame.
Last year, the Aberdeen-born star said she had tried ‘to be the best mother I could in the circumstances I had created, but I also wanted to be the artist I am’. She added: ‘It was difficult and there were times I was thinking, “What am I doing?”. Was I a good mother? I’m insecure about it.’
But her concerns can now be laid to rest – after her eldest daughter gave her top marks for her parenting skills.
Lola Lennox, also a singer-songwriter, said: ‘All mums worry about being a good enough mum.
‘I always say to her that she really found an incredible balance between being herself and doing the thing she loves and being a totally committed, loving mum.
‘I don’t have memories of feeling like she was gone for too long. She was always able to strike that balance really well. The legend, the Annie Lennox thing is one thing, but to me she’s Mum.
‘She’s been a chameleon through the years in many ways and she’s had many different chapters that have punctuated through her life.
‘But at the core of things I know she is the same person she was when she was a little girl living in Scotland.
‘She’s a human as well, and that’s the person I know. She was a great mum. I couldn’t have a better one.’
Ms Lennox – known for Eurythmics’ hits such as There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart) and Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) – is keen
to help her daughter break into the music world and produced her new single, La La Love Me, with Lola’s boyfriend, Canadian model and musician Braeden Wright. They recorded the song at Lola’s Los Angeles apartment.
She said: ‘I was looking for a producer. She was like, “OK, this might sound a bit random, but should we just try working on it together”.
‘Mum lives 15 minutes away and I have a home studio in my apartment so we got together in my living room.
‘We stepped out of the motherdaughter thing into a more professional and inspired environment and it clicked. She’s really proud of me. She sees how happy it makes me and
‘All mothers worry about being good enough’
‘I’m really inspired by how passionate she is’
she loves the songs. It’s been really inspiring to be around how passionate and how dedicated she is to making incredible music.
‘There’s definitely a little pressure because of what she has achieved. I work extra hard.’ She added: ‘She’s inspired my sister Tali and I – not so much through words but her actions.’ Her mother added: ‘We have found we can communicate. It hasn’t always been easy but we are in this beautiful place now Lola is an adult. We put the outside world and what I’ve done outside when we’re together. It’s been such a joy.’