After Her ‘Heartstopper’ Cameo, Baby Queen Reveals the Cast Could Feature On Her New Album (Exclusive)

After two seasons, countless soundtrack songs and her very first cameo, Baby Queen has become the definitive sound of Heartstopper.

The musician, originally from South Africa, just announced her debut album Quarter Life Crisis coming this fall. But fans of the romance series will recognize her from that adorable Season 2 prom scene, in which Baby Queen teams up with Sahar (Leila Khan) to serenade Tao (William Gao), Elle (Yasmin Finney) and the rest of Truham-Higgs. And according to the singer herself, it wasn't exactly an easy experience.

"I must've played 'Just Like Heaven' on the guitar 50+ times," she exclusively tells The Messenger via email. "My fingers were almost falling off by the end."

However, that didn't stop the cast from all hanging out together after filming wrapped — Baby Queen revealed that this snapshot was taken afterwards in a classroom that doubled as Corinna Brown's (who plays Tara) dressing room.

Now, the singer has become even more entwined than ever with the teen series — her new single "All the Things" is inspired by Tao and Elle, while the deluxe CD of Quarter Life Crisis features limited-edition artwork from Heartstopper creator Alice Oseman. Below, Baby Queen spills on her friendships with the cast, fitting into the world of Heartstopper and why The Cure was the perfect choice for prom.

On first getting involved with 'Heartstopper'...

Baby Queen: Alice Oseman, the creator and author of Heartstopper, and Patrick Walters, who produced the show, invited me down to the production company’s offices to watch the first three episodes. They'd already used three of my songs ("Want Me," "Dover Beach" and "Buzzkill") in the show and felt as if my music was a really important part of the world they were building. It was so organic. I loved the show and told them I wanted to be as involved as I possibly could be, so I went home and started working on more music for them that day.

On the 'Heartstopper' graphic novels...

Baby Queen: I'd never read them or heard of Heartstopper before that initial meeting, but have now read all four volumes — some of them multiple times for inspiration. I am Alice's biggest fan. It's such a beautiful, innocent and hopeful story that gives visibility to so many different kinds of people. When I was younger and trying to figure out my sexuality, I would've loved to have been able to see a reflection of my feelings on-screen, but there hasn’t been anything like this before. I'm just happy so many young people now get to read these books or watch this show and feel less alone.

On her Season 2 cameo....

Baby Queen: I don't think it was always the plan. It just made sense after the first season. Alice was working on a way I could appear in the show that would feel right. There's a very big family mentality amongst everybody who has been a part of the show, and it definitely feels like a full circle moment from when I first met them all.

On that prom dress...

Baby Queen: I only saw the dress a short while before filming. It was made by the costume team, and I love it so much. The idea was to visually keep me in the world of Heartstopper and the prom. We didn't want me to go on stage and be Baby Queen. I think that might've been quite distracting. There were actually two dresses because I had a body double for the day, which was a hilarious experience. Sadly I didn't get to keep either of them!

On releasing her cover of 'Just Like Heaven' to the world...

Baby Queen: I've gotten so many messages about it online so who knows? I might have to! The team wanted a song that was romantic and new wave. The Cure is the pinnacle of new wave (and romance) so it makes sense that we ended up going with "Just Like Heaven." It's such a beautiful song with a really powerful lyric. Recording it really made me hear it with new ears.

On her off-screen friendships with the cast...

Baby Queen: They are all the most wonderful people. I think I've probably hung out with Joe [Locke], Bash [Croft], Corri [Brown] and Kizzy [Edgell] the most. It's usually just been going for dinner or lunch or drinking cocktails. It’s hard because everybody has become so busy so I don't see them as much as I'd like to, but they always come out to my shows when they can. 

On the cast possibly making a cameo on her upcoming album...

Baby Queen: I didn't foresee it before reading this, but I do now! If any of them want to make an appearance on my album, they would be more than welcome to.