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" I grew up playing in youth orchestras, so they were my most treasured memories, so to be in front of an orchestra playing my own material would be incredible. "

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" I remember listening to Miles Davis in the car with my dad. I had just done my Grade 5 piano exam, and I was quite cocky. I said, 'It sounds like he's played the wrong note there.' I remember the look of horror on my dad's face, and thinking, 'Wow, I have to figure out why that is not acceptable.' "

Laura Mvula

Listening

Face

Remember

" I always start with emotion. That's where I start all of my improvisations, on the piano. I always start with the mood or the feel of where I am in that moment. "

" My parents encouraged us to commit to things, so if we wanted to learn an instrument, it was all the grades and all the theory. "

Laura Mvula

Grades

Instrument

" I always said when I was younger, I wanted to write film music, and I think that's what my ultimate dream is. "

" My songs are very personal, which means they are fantastically therapeutic to write, but performing them night after night is emotionally draining. "

" I like pastels and lighter shades on darker skins. I feel like it lifts everything and accentuates being chocolate. "

Laura Mvula

Being

Chocolate

" I envy those who can wear red lipstick or any bold lip colour, really. My top lip just doesn't seem to take colour - there's nothing I can do to change that, so I usually just use a nude on the bottom lip. "

" I think, when I started writing songs, my voice just became another tool. It wasn't something that I was going to try desperately to woo a listener. As long as I'm using my voice in a way that helps people understand what I'm trying to say, then I feel like I'm doing all right. "

" What I wear is everything - from how I carry my hair to what I'm wearing on my feet. I have to feel comfortable on stage, so I like to wear things that have room. My mood changes a lot, so sometimes I wear 6-inch heels, and other times I'll perform in bare feet. "

" I had a very thorough grounding in music; I'd grown up around songs. My parents listened to a lot of music. My dad was majorly into jazz, which was absolutely a big influence on me, even if it was more subconsciously as a kid. "

" My aunt is the director of the acapella group Black Voices. I was so struck by them as a child. They sang with such passion and conviction. By the time I turned 15, I had plucked up the courage to ask if I could join the group. Acapella is a different discipline from singing with an accompaniment - it is much more exposed. "

" I write songs from the heart, and I don't hold back. "

" My parents were quite strict; we couldn't just listen to whatever music we wanted. It was very much like they monitored what we listened to. "

Laura Mvula

Listen

Whatever

" Taxi drivers used to ask me what kind of music I did, and I'd say, 'Well, it's kind of jazz, soul, classical' - but that makes no sense to anyone. "

" I got into the habit of filtering out all the good in my life, focusing on only the negative. I'm not sure why I did it, but it's a pretty depressing state. "

" 'Mvula' is my married name, but for some reason my nan calls me 'McVula.' I'm not sure if it's one of those jokey Caribbean things, or whether she's just getting it wrong. "

Laura Mvula

She

Caribbean

" I respect hippos. They just look the way they do; they can't do anything about it, but they don't seem bothered. "

" I regrettably wasted time at university by being overwhelmed and intimidated by the talent of other composers. I felt stuck and didn't know what I was doing there. I enjoyed my experience, but I didn't grab it in the way I would now. "

" Fame hasn't really affected me. I have a really close knit group around me, and my sister is always with me, so it's like a bit of a travelling circus. "

" I've always had this passion to be creative, and wanted to sing or be in bands and make music, but I didn't have ideas as to what format it'd be, or how I'd do it. I'm not very good with plans. I didn't think it would be me at the front, either. In fact, I'd go as far as saying that was something I'd prevent. "

" Lots of people think I'm telling porky pies when I say how nervous I get about singing. I was good at working out how music was put together, and I was good at being at the back, but if you asked me to sing up front, then I looked like I was going to pass out. "

Laura Mvula

Together

Music

" I'm not like my siblings, who are musical but can turn their hands to other professions! I'd always wanted to be involved in music - I'm a great believer in doing things that fulfil you. "

" The first time I sang in church, when I was ten, the applause was so overwhelming that I started to weep. My mum had to rescue me from the stage. "

Laura Mvula

First Time

Church

" Lizz Wright is my favourite singer. Her voice moves me and takes me to another place. She also grows her own food, and that inspires me. "

" Limitlessness is important for me; I want to be able to use every opportunity to push me forward onto the next thing. "

Laura Mvula

Forward

Opportunity

" If I'm uncomfortable on stage, everybody can see it. I'm not very good at hiding it. I like long, loose jacket dresses - anything that I can literally have room to move in - not that I'm a very big dancer, but because sometimes I'm sitting down at the keyboard, and then sometimes I'm standing. It just has to feel good. "

" I really love jazz, but I will never be a jazz musician as much as I dream. But, I think that the jazz music I love is there in my music. "

" If I'm playing a gig in London, it feels so important. The adrenaline rush here is bigger than anywhere else. I kind of like the pressure that London puts you under. "

" There was always a piano in the house when I was growing up - my dad played, and I thought it was cool - and when I was eight, I begged my parents to let me have lessons. After a couple of weeks, I wanted to give up, but my parents were very focused and made me keep going, which I'm very pleased about now. "

" I don't think I've ever been chatted up, and I don't think I've ever chatted anyone up. The Fresh Prince has the best chat-up lines. "