Quotes from Ella Mai

I'm someone who likes routine.

I'm big on self-confidence.

Not everybody gets to wake up and do what they love.

The first time I found out that 'Boo'd Up' went platinum, I was handed the plaque. They really surprised me. I thought we were gold, and then Mustard and my managers brought the plaque to my rehearsals and told me. I was like, 'You are lying!' Like, I couldn't believe it. I'm just honored, honestly. It's a great feeling.

Everyone in L.A. loves sushi, and I don't understand it at all.

When you're in love, your heart and your mind are in sync, and everything just feels right. It's a special feeling.

L.A. is so slow. Everyone is so chill, and the weather, of course, makes everything better, but it's just a different vibe.

There's a lot of young females doing R&B in England who are extremely talented and deserve more light on their stories.

Mustard believes in me so much. It's good to have a mentor that's been through it. Even though he's a producer, he's been a new artist.

With social media especially, there's a lot of image issues that everyone faces because there's so much pressure on us.

There's a place for R&B in the U.K. industry - a huge market. I hope that 'Boo'd Up' can be a testament to the fact. Sometimes, it takes you moving outside the box to prove that it can be done.

I wanted to show people that I don't just make love songs that are about purely being in love.

It's deeper than the music when it comes to me and Mustard. He's like a big brother, and I'm so thankful to have a mentor like him to advise me. Even though he gives me a lot of creative control, I always go to him like, 'Do you like this?' It's so cool that it's always a collaborative effort. He never makes me feel pressured or anything.

It was such a culture shock for me, being plucked from this diverse neighborhood in London into Jamaica Queens. I'm in this new environment, and I had an English accent.

As much as heartbreak music might be therapeutic, we all want love and long for that feeling. So if a song can give you that feeling, even without being in love, that's amazing.

Mustard saw my Instagram probably, like, August of 2015. He just reached out to me by DM on Instagram.

I've learned a lot. I've seen a lot. I've grown a lot.

I could never have imagined that, so early in my career, that I'd be ticking off boxes that I've dreamed about since I was a little girl.

'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill' happens to be my favorite album.

I was a huge Lauryn Hill fan; that was all my mom would listen to in the car.

I like to leave things open to interpretation. But I also like to make a point. There's two meanings behind each EP title. With 'Time,' that was 'time to move on': you know, you've been in a bad situation; this is enough. But it was also time, in my life, for introducing myself, my first project I was putting out with Mustard. A new exciting time.

I feel like everyone has been in a bitter situation, regardless whether it's cheating or just not being over someone who is over you - you compare yourself to the next.

A lot of people say 'Boo'd Up' reminds them of '90s R&B. It has that feeling, which is why I think people take to the song so much.

I write in a diary every night to collect my thoughts. It's very therapeutic to songwrite, because it's the same thing.