I sung from an early age and I was always given nice parts in school musicals, but I definitely wasn't the golden girl. I didn't have the guts. You've got to have a real confidence in yourself to be like: "I'm gonna be a singer and write songs." I never thought it would go anywhere because it's so unattainable to be a singer.

Meanwhile, I get to make an album. I feel like I've been very lucky. There is a guilt when I see people I know who work really hard, then I'm like, "Oh, I've got to do an interview today." I'm so appreciative of all of this, but it does feel like the bubble will burst at some point and it will all have been a dream.

If you're from South London you feel like you're always trying to win people over, so perhaps that underdog passion comes through.

I want to look classy and sophisticated. For the "Running" video, I wanted to make a bit of a statement and to be slightly over-the-top. I'm not taking the piss out of myself, but I'm not taking myself too seriously, either. I'm just having fun and trying to pretend I'm a pop star, really.

If I make a song where I'm happy, I sound completely mad - I think my voice is better-suited for sadder songs.

I started meeting the right people, like [producer] Dave [Okumu], who explained to me how songwriting is really simple - "just like shitting," he said. "You gotta let it all out." When he put it like that, however disgusting it is, it made a lot of sense to me.

I am just trying to keep it real.