I remember being, like, the age of 7 and just always being in control of something or someone, a baby somewhere. I had lots of cousins and brothers, and we were all taught that's how you are, you know. Things don't just run themselves; you have to ma...
You can't please everybody. I give up. I'm not trying to. I don't care. Leave me alone with that.
I have my family; I'm never alone.
I'm the female Jay-Z. I never compared myself to other women artists. I compared myself with the best, and the best is Jay-Z.
Luke James has this mystique about him that's not something you can explain; you can only experience it. He's got a whole D'Angelo feel to him as well.
In order for me to write, I have to experience life. I write the songs based on real life, and I perform them from a very real place.
American food is not what I'm used to - everything is like three portions.
I always say, 'There's a difference between cooked food and McDonald's.' Your mom's homemade dinner - you enjoy this more than you enjoy the fast food that comes along and goes, and I strive to make homemade dinner every time I put out an album.
I come from a family of well-endowed booty women.
I grew up in a family of nine kids.
You have to have courage to look back and be honest about your own drama.
Sometimes I wake up in the morning and feel like going straight back to bed. But I still have to get up and work, and I still have to take advantage of the chances I've been given in life.
John Legend is a cool guy. He likes to chill, is easy to talk to and hang out with. He's also inspiring on a musical level.
The Americans love me because I'm so completely unwilling to change my whole Britishness.
I'm used to traveling. I'm used to being in different areas of the world. Home is where my suitcase lands.
No one goes straight to happiness after a breakup.
My mum is West African, from Senegal; my dad is from Grenada. There was a huge controversy about them getting together.
Me being a black girl in London, whose mom is first-generation African and whose dad is West Indian, gives me a different view. I'm coming at soul from my own place.
I'm signed to a U.S. label, and I didn't enjoy the 3 A.M. phone calls. I'm not a great sleeper, so I didn't enjoy being woken up.
I can sit in my room and write a song that I think might be a hit. I can sort of make myself do that, and then I'll play it to a friend, and they'll say, 'Oh, that's nice.' But when something happens to me, and I sit down and write a song to get rid ...
