Quotes from Fleur East

I put pressure on myself all the time. I felt it so much with 'Sax,' but I had to just let go and enjoy it.

I'm a believer in things happening for a reason.

I've waited so long to get to this point, and I'm so happy to be making my first album. I want to be a performer and an entertainer.

I've worked in a call centre and as a nightclub waitress. I served champagne to Rihanna.

Everyone's path is really different, and you just have to be in the right place at the right time. 'The X Factor' gave me that chance I needed, that platform.

'The X Factor' was the final push I needed to have the presence and confidence on stage, which I didn't have before. It's a crash course in the music industry. If you can survive the show, you're ready for the industry.

I didn't grow up in a wealthy family at all. Being at home all day and watching movies, that was a luxury.

I normally hit the gym five times a week. I tend to do half an hour of cardio - on the treadmill or a spin class - then head for the weights. I do a lot of core work, obviously!

I do loads of squats with weights. It's great for your bum and legs.

I'd perform in the mirror; I'd pretend to do interviews. I'd practice my autograph for hours.

I remember, one day, I just printed out about a hundred CVs, and I was running around London. I was going to modeling agencies, temping agencies, anything. I was so desperate.

Before going on 'X Factor' again, I felt like I'd tried everything else.

Even before I auditioned for 'X Factor' the second time, I was doing a lot of dance music.

Just before I auditioned for 'The X Factor,' there was nothing in my diary at all. I had no shows; nothing was happening. It was make-or-break time for me, and I had to consider doing another career altogether.

My mum is black, my dad is white, and when I was a teenager, people would say, 'So what are you? Are you black? Or white? What are you more of?'

I've always loved working out. When I was little, my dad used to make me and my sister do 10 press-ups every day before we brushed our teeth in the morning. It was like a boot camp! Then I did a lot of athletics at school and was a dancer.

I got to the point where I'd featured on songs; I'd done backing singing for major artists. I'd done all these shows, but it was always for other people.

There's so much pressure, but I think if you really love it, if you truly love it, and it's your passion to sing, then that's what will get through. I think if you don't have that, you'll realise quickly.

I uplift people and see the good in a bad situation. The worst is I'm very critical of myself. If I do a performance, I watch it 100 times afterwards and pick it apart.

I do body conditioning, spinning and yoga. On the treadmill, I'll do intervals of running flat and then on incline. I'll do that for an hour.

The attitude among the people I knew was, 'Fleur wants to be a singer' but it was never, 'Go for it. You can do it.' Everyone was cynical because we'd never seen anyone where we came from do it.

I used to hate performing in front of anybody, but I was forced to sing in front of family, at family gatherings. Then it slowly developed, and I started to love it.

I used to just sit in the living room and make up songs on the keyboard.

Traditionally with debut albums, labels insist on a face, so people know who you are.