In my life right now, in my music, and just overall I feel like I'm winning. It doesn't matter what this person is saying or what the charts are saying or what award shows are saying, the public opinion doesn't matter. I feel like I'm winning in my spirit.

When I was 17, my producer Rodney Jerkins was working with Michael Jackson at the time. He knew how much I wanted to meet Michael Jackson, so he says, 'Would you like to come and meet him?' I'm like, 'Are you serious? Of course I want to meet Michael Jackson! Where do I meet you? Where do we come?'

I'm always smiling and happy.

Stay true to yourself because it goes a long way. If you don't know who you are, who are you really?

And I'm looking at him like, 'Oh my God. This is Michael Jackson'. I fainted, blacked out - like seriously blacked out.

I feel like I needed a balance. I don't want to forget about my personal life and spending time with myself.

I was just so honored to play the role of Cinderella and to just be the first African-American princess, that's just historic for me, that's such a mark in my life and my career and then the bonus of just working with my favorite person in the whole world, Whitney [Houston], like her voice just did something to my spirit.