Begin Again with Davina McCall

Alexandra Burke: Becoming Chaka Khan & Finding Her Purpose After Grief

2026-08-20

What does it take to keep going when life keeps testing how badly you want the dream? In this episode of Begin Again, Alexandra Burke joins Davina for an emotional and deeply personal conversation about X Factor, grief, motherhood, love, faith and the determination that has carried her through every chapter of her life. Alexandra looks back on the extraordinary road to becoming a star: singing alongside her mum as a child, Stevie Wonder wanting to sign her at just 12 years old, being sent home from X Factor at 16, and the mother...

What does it take to keep going when life keeps testing how badly you want the dream?

In this episode of Begin Again, Alexandra Burke joins Davina for an emotional and deeply personal conversation about X Factor, grief, motherhood, love, faith and the determination that has carried her through every chapter of her life.

Alexandra looks back on the extraordinary road to becoming a star: singing alongside her mum as a child, Stevie Wonder wanting to sign her at just 12 years old, being sent home from X Factor at 16, and the mother who eventually pushed her to go back and try again. She opens up about what was really happening in her life during that first rejection, why she now knows she wasn’t ready, and the remarkable full-circle journey that followed.

She also speaks movingly about losing her mum, the grief she still carries and how becoming a mother herself has changed the way she understands the sacrifices her own mum made. Alexandra shares why she has fiercely protected her two boys, how she met her partner Darren after years of choosing the wrong relationships, and the moment she realised the family life she has now is everything she once prayed for.

Now, playing Chaka Khan on stage in I’m Every Woman, Alexandra reveals why the most challenging role of her career is bringing parts of her own past back to the surface, why she has had to learn to leave Chaka at the theatre, and why she plans to return to therapy when the show ends.

This is a conversation about rejection, grief, resilience, faith and refusing to give up on the life you know you’re meant to have.

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(00:00) Intro

(01:20) Why “I’m Every Woman” Means So Much

(06:51) How Her Mum Inspired Her

(15:08) Alexandra’s Bond With Her Mum

(18:57) Singing With Her Mum as a Child

(20:06) Why She Turned Down Stevie Wonder