Jade Thirlwall and her ex-boyfriend Jordan Stephens are said to have started having issues ‘a few months ago’ and started having frank relationship discussions.The singer, 33, and the Rizzle Kicks star, 34, have split after six years and pals have now said things between the former couple were rocky for a while.According to insiders, their decision to break-up was ‘not taken easily’ and they began to talk about what splitting up would look like for them. A source close to the situation told the Sun: ‘Jade and Jordan started to have some issues a few months ago. They’ve been together for a very long time so they could have honest discussions with each other.’Naturally, this didn’t happen overnight. Deciding to leave each other wasn’t an easy decision for either of them. It was a gradual decision as they thought through what their futures would look like both with or without each other.’There is only love and respect between them. Things just weren’t working and they were honest about that.’ Jade Thirlwall and her ex-boyfriend Jordan Stephens are said to have started having issues ‘a few months ago’ and started having frank relationship discussions The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Jade and Jordan for comment. Since news of their split was reported, Jordan has been on a soul-searching trip, sharing photographs of his solo getaway on Instagram.Meanwhile, Jade is preparing for a string of gigs next week as she gets back on the road.Jade appeared to hint at her split from boyfriend Jordan in a recent interview, weeks before it emerged that their relationship was over.The former couple lived together and split their time between properties in London and Margate, in Kent, but are said to have separated earlier this year.Jordan has since wiped all trace of Jade from his Instagram and she has also removed all images of the singer from her own page.Jade appeared to allude to her relationship woes in an interview last month, as she shared she was ‘going through something privately’.Speaking about writing her upcoming second album, the hitmaker said she was channelling anything that had happened in her life into her new music.She said: ‘Right now, I don’t even know where it’s heading. I’m just writing stuff. Whatever I’m going through at the minute, like privately, I’m sort of putting pen to paper.’Jade told The Fader: ‘I think this is the exciting phase or the experimental phase, where you don’t know what it’s going to be yet. ‘For me, that’s sometimes the most magical part as an artist when you’re writing music. Come and ask me in a few months’ time and we’ll see where we’re at.’ The singer, 33, and the Rizzle Kicks star, 34, have split after six years and pals have now said things between the former couple were rocky for a whileAccording to The Sun, Jade and Jordan remain close and friends are hoping for a reconciliation. They still follow each other on Instagram at the moment.Sharing details on the alleged split, an insider told the publication: ‘Jade and Jordan had a very serious and loving relationship but recently they have had some frank discussions about their future and have decided to separate.’It’s not been an easy time but they’ve both been throwing themselves into work.’Their friends adore them as a couple and are really hoping they get back together but it’s still very raw at the moment.’The Daily Mail has approached Jade and Jordan for comment.They notably failed to honour their sixth anniversary with a social media post, which they had previously done in the past.Their last joint appearance was at the Brit Awards in February, but they have not been seen together since. Hinting at potential heartbreak while discussing working on her new album, Jade told Fader in June: ‘I’m just writing stuff. Whatever I’m going through at the minute, like privately, I’m sort of putting pen to paper.’I think this is the exciting phase or the experimental phase, where you don’t know what it’s going to be yet.’Jade, who attended bandmate Perrie Edwards’ wedding without Jordan this summer, shared photographs from a trip to Sri Lanka at the start of the year.They met during lockdown through a series of Zoom dates.She previously claimed finding love with Jordan during the pandemic was a ‘strange’ experience.Jade said she hadn’t been ‘looking for anyone’ at the time as she was relishing her independence.Speaking in Metro’s Guilty Pleasures column at the time, she explained: ‘I ended up meeting someone in lockdown which is strange… I quite enjoyed doing it that way. The singer, pictured with Jordan, appeared to allude to her relationship woes in an interview last month, as she shared she was ‘going through something privately”We had real dates and really got to know each other. I wouldn’t say I was looking for anyone at the time.’I was happy to be in lockdown because I am independent. I think you can still strive in your singleness in lockdown.’Jade, who broke up with her ex Jed Elliott after three years together the July prior, said it was ‘really important’ to her to be with someone who supported her and felt she was a ‘good match’ with Jordan.Jordan is one half of pop act Rizzle Kicks, who were together from 2008 until 2016 before getting back together in 2024. He also worked on Jade’s debut album That’s Showbiz Baby! which was released last year.Jade said at the time: ‘I actually really didn’t want to date a musician. I’d done it previously; it never works out well. But it’s amazing now. We write together.’He’s on my album; I’m on his. Jordan’s on the backing vocals for Headache.’