Ella Mai

Ella Mai Howell is a British R&B singer and songwriter whose 2017 single “Boo’d Up” became a sleeper hit, reaching number five on the Billboard Hot 100. The song won Best R&B Song at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards and received a Song of the Year nomination. Its follow-up, “Trip,” reached number 11 on the same chart, giving Mai a pair of major US singles ahead of her debut album.

Born in London on 3 November 1994, Mai began her career while studying at London’s British and Irish Modern Music Institute in 2014. During that period, she auditioned for the 11th season of The X Factor as part of a trio. She released her first solo EP, the four-track Troubled, in October 2015. American producer DJ Mustard discovered the EP and her social-media performances, then signed her to 10 Summers Records, his Interscope Records imprint.

Mai released a series of EPs before her first full-length record, with Ready arriving in 2017 and supplying “Boo’d Up.” Her self-titled debut studio album followed in 2018 and peaked at number five on the US Billboard 200. In 2019, she was nominated for British Breakthrough Act at the Brit Awards. That year also brought three Billboard Music Awards, including Top R&B Artist, along with three iHeartRadio Music Awards, three NAACP Image Awards, and two Soul Train Music Awards, including the Songwriter’s Award.

Her second album, Heart on My Sleeve, was released in 2022. It did not reach the UK Albums Chart but performed moderately on the US Billboard 200, with “DFMU” debuting on the Billboard Hot 100. Mai released her third studio album, Do You Still Love Me?, in February 2026. The record was promoted by the singles “Tell Her” and “Little Things.”