Ahead of performing at Reading Festival, Leigh-Anne was a bit nervous. "Absolutely petrified," she grins. Despite all their successes, it's the sort of place that Little Mix would never have been invited to play, and pop acts are still few and far between.

Her slick 45-minute set on the Chevron was an undeniable success, though. "The crowd were insane. Normally, I finish a gig and pick my performance apart, but I'm honestly just buzzing," she tells Dork shortly after coming off stage. "I also had my first mosh pit, which was so iconic." Leigh-Anne probably isn't going to veer into the world of heavy metal, but going solo is all about those new experiences, she explains. "It feels so amazing to be able to express myself and share what I love."

Debut EP 'No Hard Feelings' was released last summer, but since then, Leigh-Anne's left major label Warner and gone independent. "This era feels so different," she explains. "Coming out of Little Mix, I wasn't to know that being independent was the way to go for me because all I've ever known is major labels. But the idea of just being able to do what I want and having full creative control was something that I'd been waiting for. Now I can, and it feels so great."

Changing things up did lead to some serious self-reflection. "I had to ask myself, 'What do I want this to look like?' and 'How do I want this to feel?' I also had to ask what solo success meant to me. Obviously me and the girls in Little Mix absolutely killed it, so everything else going forward should be fun. I don't need to put all this pressure on myself – I know my talent, I know I make good music, and now, I just want to enjoy doing that."

The first taste of the new chapter was the smirking comeback track 'Been A Minute', which was released in July. "It's such a summer banger, I had to release it," explains Leigh-Anne. "It really is just the beginning, though. I have so much to say and want to take the fans on a journey."

She doesn't want to give too much away ("I'm excited to keep unveiling") but does say the next project is all about "the journey of discovering my power, owning it and standing up for myself." She's also excited to challenge expectations. "People think Leigh-Anne is the emotional, sensitive mum… and I am, but there's a different side to me as well."

A lot of this next project is inspired by playing live. "With 'No Hard Feelings', I wanted to explore deep things like my relationship with my husband and heartache. The headline tour for that record was amazing, but doing these festivals with 'Been A Minute' and 'Burning Up', the energy has just been electric. It's been such a party, it's reminded me what I enjoy – I love to dance, I love to put on a show. There's space for those ballads, but I want to make sure people have a great time."

During her feel-good set at Reading Festival, Leigh-Anne took a moment to encourage the crowd to "to sing for love, to stand for love and to spread the love, in a world that needs it so bad right now," before a glorious cover of Bob Marley's 'You Could Be Love'. "How could you ignore what's going on right now because the world is a fucking scary place," she says of her decision to promote love during a time when hate is on the rise. "The injustices, oppression and everything else that's happening right now is fucked, quite frankly. I just wanted to talk about the importance of spreading love, and Bob Marley's 'You Could Be Loved' is one of those beautiful songs that just brings people together."

She also performed a trio of Little Mix songs – 'Touch', 'Power' and 'Sweet Melody'. "All those songs are important to me, but they're also bangers, so they slotted into the set nicely." As much as Leigh-Anne is starting a new solo chapter, she's got no intention of leaving her past behind. "I wouldn't be where I am without Little Mix. Everything I've ever learned and everything that I am is because of the group. What we've done is unbelievable, and I'm only really just processing that now. There's just this pride, and I think that'll be something I always bring to my shows."

Despite the shadow cast by being a member of one of the world's most successful girl groups, Leigh-Anne says she doesn't care about the expectations around her solo project. "It took a while to retrain my brain, but I now know I don't have to prove anything to anyone," she grins. "I'm done with thinking like I do. I've been doing this for more than 12 years. Now, I just want to do it with no inhibitions."