I think, more importantly, it's about who is your core team? Who are the people around you that are going to fight for you and make sure that's all protected?

I think the world tries to put people in a box, like this is the only appropriate way to be beautiful.

It was like I couldn't even begin to tell my mom I was singing. I didn't want anyone to think that she was trying to get me to sing. I wanted to prove to myself I could do it on my own. I really wanted to do a completely different thing.

There's been so many, I think [Lucas Goodman and I] share this, but for us, Afropunk was a really big moment just because it was in New York.

I'm totally into the emotional aspect of things.

I think the lion, besides the elephant, was the one animal that I just started thinking about so much.

Of course the Disney movies, you know all the soundtracks, and anything Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire were doing - Singing in the Rain was one of my favorite musicals I used to watch a lot because my mom came from a theatre background.