Ella Mai: R&B’s next big thing

People are talking about Ella Mai, whose song Boo’d Up has become one of the year’s biggest breakout hits

The 23-year-old singer has made history by becoming the first woman to top three R&B/hip-hop radio charts in the US since Beyoncé did it with Love on Top in 2012. “If you’d have told me five years ago this was how my journey was going to go, I would’ve said you’re definitely lying,” Ella told Newsbeat. She’s of Jamaican and Irish descent and was named after legendary jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald. She was born in London but moved to New York when she was 12. “My mom was a teacher and got a job there.” She returned to the UK after high school and studied creative musicianship. Ella was part of a girl group called Arize that appeared on the 11th season of The X Factor UK. But they didn’t make it past the first auditions in front of the judges, and disbanded. She was discovered by American DJ and producer Mustard after a cover she’d done of Tupac’s Keep Your Head Up ended up on his Instagram feed. He signed her to his label and three EPs followed – Time, Change and Ready. About Boo’d Up, which has gone platinum, she says, “We wanted to make it really fun . . . and just like an innocent, puppy-love song. It’s clean, there’s no cursing in it or anything, so every age can appreciate it.” Her latest track, Trip, is also inspired by love. Rumours started flying recently that she was more than just friends with fellow singer Kehlani, whom she toured with last year, but Kehlani (23) tweeted that they’re “not dating”, adding, “That’s my sis!” Ella has promised fans her long-awaited debut album will drop soon. In the meantime her first US tour has been sold out and she’s set to open for Bruno Mars on a few dates of his 24K Magic World tour.

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