Ella Mai's singing career began whilst studying at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute London (BIMM London) in 2014, when she competed on season 11 of The X Factor as part of a trio, Arize, but didn't advance beyond the initial audition for the judges. The group broke up shortly thereafter. The following year, Mai uploaded a four-track solo EP of originals to SoundCloud titled Trouble, produced by her high school friend, DJ Kam 1, who was also her DJ on Kehlani's SweetSexySavage World Tour in 2017. After being discovered on Instagram, she signed to DJ Mustard's label, 10 Summers Records and Interscope Records.[3]
In February 2016, she released Time, the first in her EP trilogy. The six-track EP included the single, "She Don't," which featured Ty Dolla Sign.[4] She released her second EP, Change, in November 2016 and third, Ready, in February 2017.[5] "Boo'd Up," which was featured on the EP, rose in popularity on social media as well as in nightclubs over the next few months.[6] Ella Mai toured with Read more
On August 14, she joined Bruno Mars on the 24K Magic World Tour after Cardi B dropped out.[14] On August 3, she released the single "Trip," with an accompanied music video releasing on September 18.[15] The song peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Ella Mai released her self-titled debut album, a 16-track set featuring hit "Boo'd Up," on 12 October 2018.[16] The album sold 69,000 album-equivalent units with 17,000 coming from pure sales.[17] On October 22, 2018, Mai announced her debut tour set to begin in January 2019.[18][19] On November 18, she performed on Saturday Night Live with Jezebel describing Mai as "Pure '90s R&B Heartthrob".[20][21]
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