Ella Mai
Ella Mai Howell (born 3 November 1994) is an English R&B singer-songwriter. Her musical career began at London's British and Irish Modern Music Institute in 2014, during which time she auditioned as part of a trio on the 11th season of The X Factor. In 2015, she released her debut four-track solo extended play (EP), Troubled in October of that year. The EP and her performances on social media were discovered by American record producer DJ Mustard, who signed Mai to his record label 10 Summers Records, an imprint of Interscope Records.
This article is about the singer. For her self-titled album, see Ella Mai (album).
Ella Mai
Ella Mai Howell
3 November 1994
London, England
- Singer
- songwriter
2014–present
- 10 Summers
- Interscope
Arize
From 2016 to 2018, she released three additional EPs on the label, including Time, Change, and Ready. Her self-titled debut studio album (2018) was preceded by the singles "Boo'd Up" and "Trip", which peaked at numbers five and 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively. The former won Best R&B Song and a nomination for Song of the Year at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, while Mai herself was a nominee for British Breakthrough Act at the Brit Awards 2019.[2] That same year, she won three awards at the 2019 Billboard Music Awards, including Top R&B Artist. Her second studio album, Heart on My Sleeve (2023) failed to reach the UK Albums Chart, but performed moderately on the US Billboard 200.[3][4]
Early life and education[edit]
Ella Mai was born on 3 November 1994 to a Jamaican mother and an English-Irish father[5] in London. Her mother, a lover of American jazz music, named her after Ella Fitzgerald.[6] Mai moved from London to New York City at the age of 12 when her mother took on a teaching job there. Mai's transition to life in New York City was difficult because she was often bullied for her accent.[7] Mai graduated from Queens High School of Teaching in Glen Oaks, Queens, before returning to England aged 17.[5][8]
Artistry[edit]
In multiple interviews, Ella Mai names Lauryn Hill, Chris Brown, Brandy, Destiny's Child, Alicia Keys, and Mariah Carey as her biggest influences.[33] Vibe said her "perception of the powerful emotion is kindred to R&B heartthrobs of the '90s, who flooded the radio airwaves with soulful ballads, baby-making tunes, and heart-wrenching break-up anthems."[34] Rolling Stone described her sound as "a British émigré full of self-confidence and an affinity for classic Nineties R&B."[35]