Stalk Ashley released “Young” on 6 December 2019 as a single through Atlantic UK, with its official video on YouTube the same day. Rolling Stone, DancehallMag, Clash and TRENCH all covered it within a week. An acoustic version followed in February 2020, VP Records added it to Reggae Gold 2020, and by September 2026 the video was close to 8 million views.
Here is the full rollout, how critics responded, and the versions and performances that have kept the song alive.
“Young” release timeline
- 22 February 2019: “Sin Sex” is released as a single.
- 21 June 2019: “Drunk Text” follows. Its video arrives in July.
- September 2019: Stormzy invites her onto BBC Radio 1’s Live Lounge for a cover of Beyoncé’s “Brown Skin Girl”.
- 6 December 2019: “Young” is released through Atlantic UK, and the video goes up on her YouTube channel. Rolling Stone covers it that day.
- 9 December 2019: DancehallMag and Clash publish their write-ups.
- 11 December 2019: TRENCH covers the song.
- 31 January 2020: Bona Carter Volume 1, an acoustic session featuring “Young”, is posted on her channel.
- 14 February 2020: “Young (Acoustic) [Bona Carter Series Vol. 1]” is released as a single.
- 28 August 2020: VP Records includes “Young” on Reggae Gold 2020.
- 4 September 2022: DEADLY publishes an acoustic performance of “Young”.
The build-up
“Young” did not arrive out of nowhere. After her freestyle on Jada Kingdom’s “Banana” went viral, the two released “Wasteman” in October 2018. Rolling Stone later wrote that “Sin Sex” and “Drunk Text” had brought her major-label interest during 2019, and it described “Young” as her third single of that year.
The biggest boost came three months before release, when Stormzy featured her in the Live Lounge. Both Clash and TRENCH brought up that performance when they introduced “Young” to their readers.
How critics received “Young”
Release-week coverage was positive and focused on her as a new voice to watch:
- Rolling Stone headlined its piece as an ode to staying single and heard a Nineties radio feel in the production.
- DancehallMag described an R&B/dancehall blend and said many saw her as having what it takes to become an international star. It also noted she had 122,000 Instagram followers at the time, and that “Drunk Text” had passed 250,000 views.
- Clash, writing from the UK, praised the song’s soulful sensuality and its strong hooks.
- TRENCH focused on how she mixed Caribbean influences into a smooth R&B vocal.
The song’s reputation kept growing. In a 2024 interview feature, the Jamaica Gleaner described “Young” as her “fast-becoming classic anthem”.
The acoustic afterlife
Less than two months after release, Stalk Ashley reworked “Young” for Bona Carter, her own series of acoustic performances. Volume 1 strips the song back to voice, guitar and keyboard and pairs it with “Summer 16”. When Audiomack profiled her later in 2020, it noted that she worked Daniel Caesar and H.E.R.’s “Best Part” into this version.
A recording of the acoustic arrangement came out as a single on Valentine’s Day 2020. In September 2022, the Jamaican music platform DEADLY released another acoustic performance of “Young”, filmed in the hills at the Camp Habitat studio. That two different acoustic takes exist says a lot about how well the melody holds up without the beat.
Reggae Gold 2020
In August 2020 VP Records placed “Young” on Reggae Gold 2020, its long-running annual compilation. It shared the tracklist with Koffee’s “Toast”, Beenie Man’s “Blackboard” and Spice’s “Inches”. Reviewing the compilation that October, Reggae Vibes pointed readers back to her “Wasteman” breakthrough and summed up “Young” as a song celebrating single life.
Views, streams and staying power
- YouTube: the official video stood at close to 8 million views on 13 September 2026, up from just over 90,000 in its first three days.
- Genius: “Young” is the most popular Stalk Ashley song page on the site.
- Charts: none of the coverage we reviewed reported a chart position for “Young”, so we do not list one.
What came next
“Young” opened a busy Atlantic UK run. She released “OPEN” and “Deserted” with WSTRN in May 2020, then “Incognito” with Alkaline that October, before the Excuses, Pt. I EP in December 2021. Follow the full story on her career timeline, or explore the meaning of “Young” and the story told in its music video.
Lyrics
Read the full lyrics on Genius, or visit our lyrics hub for the rest of her catalogue.
If you like “Young”, you’ll love…
- “Brown Skin Girl” (Live Lounge) – Stormzy feat. Stalk Ashley (2019): the performance that set up the release of “Young”.
- “Really Like U” – Stalk Ashley x Skillibeng (2024): a later Dancehall&B favourite. Read how it started in an Instagram DM.
- “Only You” – Jada Kingdom (2025): dancehall-flavoured R&B from the artist who helped launch her career.
Frequently asked questions
When did Stalk Ashley release “Young”?
“Young” was released on 6 December 2019 through Atlantic UK. The official video was posted on her YouTube channel the same day.
Is there an acoustic version of “Young”?
Yes. She performed it in Bona Carter Volume 1 on YouTube in January 2020, and “Young (Acoustic) [Bona Carter Series Vol. 1]” was released as a single on 14 February 2020. DEADLY also released an acoustic performance in 2022.
How many views does the “Young” video have?
The official YouTube video was close to 8 million views as of 13 September 2026.
Which compilation features “Young”?
VP Records’ Reggae Gold 2020, released on 28 August 2020, includes “Young” as track 12.
Did “Young” chart?
We found no reliable report of a chart position for “Young”. Its success shows in its long-running YouTube views and its status as her most-viewed song page on Genius.
Sources
- Stalk Ashley’s ‘Young’ Video Is an Ode to Staying Single – Rolling Stone
- Stalk Ashley Brings Sultry Vibes With Her Music Video For ‘Young’ – DancehallMag
- Stalk Ashley’s ‘Young’ Is The Perfect Introduction – Clash
- Stalk Ashley Stirs Caribbean Influences Into Her R&B Sound On Head-Turning ‘Young’ – TRENCH
- 5 Questions with Stalk Ashley – Jamaica Gleaner
- Stalk Ashley Is Reimagining R&B From Jamaica (Audiomack feature via DJBooth)
- Various – Reggae Gold 2020 – Review – Reggae Vibes
- Reggae Gold 2020 by Various Artists – Apple Music
- Young (Acoustic) [Bona Carter Series Vol. 1] – Single – Apple Music
- Stalk Ashley – Bona Carter | Volume 1 (YouTube)
- Stalk Ashley ‘Young’ // S4 DEADLY Performance (YouTube)
- Stalk Ashley songs – Genius
