The rule I stand by as an artist is definitely be yourself, and don't make music just for other people: make it for you first.
— Stefflon Don
I was born in Birmingham, and then I moved to Rotterdam when I was about five/six and then came back when I was 14.
I tell people all the time, men don't talk to me. Even before I was a household name or whatever, when I went to clubs, people were scared to come to me because of the way I looked.
I want people to hear me and feel like they can be bold as well.
I do like a red carpet. Unfortunately I'm always under-prepared when it comes to outfits. I'm so busy running around I don't get time to do fittings.
My goal is just to be real and bring people good music and let them enjoy the music that I bring.
For the majority of the time, the songs I like, other people seem to like, so that's good.
I used to love 'Ladies Night' by Lil' Kim so much that I performed it in school without really knowing what it was about. I just knew that she was getting at a guy and winning.
I remember having a conversation with Drake just before I signed. He said, 'Make sure that, whatever you do, your opponent is scared of you.' That really stuck with me.
Lisa 'Left-Eye' Lopes in TLC, she stood out a lot with her rap. It was so different, the way she would flow.
I didn't think rap was me. But I was shy to sing in front of people. It'd be so off because I was shy.
When I'm dressed up, I feel confident - no one can't tell me anything.
Since I was 19, I've said, 'I'm gonna sign for a million.'
I tried to make people see that I'm not someone to be put in a box. I can do it all.
When you're doing so much, there's so much on your mind. The bigger the artist you become, you have to think a lot more. I'm trying not to overthink everything!
When it's my show, I know that everybody is there to see me - but I like a challenge, and I like the fact that at festivals, not everybody is there to see me, but I have the chance to convert people.
If there's something you want to say or talk about, then that's what rap is all about - talking about your own experience.
Growing up, I was definitely surrounded by music all the time. My parents used to always play music; my dad used to have reggae on. I remember walking around with a cassette recorder, and I used to just record the songs I would hear on the radio so I could play it back when I feel like.
I want to keep the same kinda vibe where we've got the dance element and hip-hop. I'm going to be singing a lot more, and I want to write more heartfelt songs.
I don't want to sound like anyone.
When I was 18 or 19, I started writing raps properly.
I'm an international baby. I'm happy my parents decided I should be worldwide.
When Kehlani brought me out onstage, I really enjoyed that. I was just appreciative for her to think of me and bring me out woman to woman, introducing me to a whole new audience to me. It was just showing that I was appreciated for what I'm doing, that some people mess with me, and I'm all over the place.
Alan Carr - I love him.
My Britishness waters my music down!
I'm more comfortable with myself and saying whatever I want and not really caring about anyone else.
I don't care about no guys; I don't care about no girls. I just want to rule the world.
I had a weird accent. Dutch people speak American English, and my parents were Jamaican, with their own broken English.
I feel like there should be someone to stick up for women and make them feel good and beautiful about themselves.
I just knew that I wanted world domination. I knew that with anything I do, I want to be the greatest. That entails being great everywhere. Not just in America - everywhere.
People say that I'm very intimidating when they see me. I think confidence can be intimidating. I kind of think it's good, because it keeps away a lot of boys.
I've never felt competitive; I'm not a competitive person. In general, I try not to be!
I love recreating, and I love elevating - anything I do I want do ten times better every time.
You can filter certain stuff - it depends what artist you are - but you're never going to be true to yourself if you're worried about what other people think.
Travelling, in general, opens your mind to so many different cultures and different ways of thinking and different ways of seeing stuff. I definitely feel like it has an influence on my music to be a bit more broader and a bit more open.
I rap and I sing, so then you've got a bit of hip-hop in there. I'm Jamaican, so you got a bit of dancehall. And I'm from London, so there's a bit of London things in there... And at sometimes, it's a little bit Afrobeat.
I was singing R&B before I was rapping, and I never really enjoyed it. But when I started rapping, I was like, 'This is sick - I'm actually alright at rapping!'
I started writing songs at eight. Heartbreak songs - don't ask me why. It was the stuff I used to hear, so I imitated it. I used to write songs about guys cheating. Could you imagine!
I want to be more than just an artist and be a people's person and do a lot of stuff for people.
Most people don't know that I'm down to earth until they meet me.
Stefflon Don songs go off in the club... well, basically, anywhere people hear them.
I'm not going to compromise or not say what I want for anyone.
I like to be in control.
When I'm in the studio with a writer, I don't mind for them to take the lead and show me something new.
I get homesick - I could be in the sunniest place, but I need to see normality, and normal, for me, is London.
If you're shy when you're singing, that's the worst combination.
A lot of Americans take to my sound.
I have my own thing going on; I don't want to imitate anyone else.
I don't really like to share deep issues or anything like that. I have a problem with that. I don't really like to talk about some stuff.
You can't tell someone how to write their own book.
