Ella Mai
"Boo'd Up"
Ella Mai Howell is an English singer and songwriter. She is signed to DJ Mustard's label 10 Summers Records where she released three extended plays. Her most recent EP, Ready, was released in February 2017, where her song "Boo'd Up" was released as a single in 2018.
Originally from London, Mai moved to New York City at the age of 12, before returning to England after graduating from Queens High School of Teaching in Glen Oaks, Queens. Whilst studying at the British and Irish Modern Music Institute London (BIMM London) in 2014, 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. After being discovered on Instagram, she signed to DJ Mustard's label 10 Summers Records. Her father is Irish and her mother is Jamaican.
Ella Mai is signed to Interscope Records. 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. She released her second EP, Change, in November 2016 and third, Ready, in February 2017. Ella Mai toured with Kehlani on her SweetSexySavage World Tour.
On 26 April 2018, she released a music video for "Boo'd Up" after it unexpectedly started to gain popularity. The single peaked at number five on the US Billboard Hot 100, as the singer topped the Emerging Artists chart.
The English songwriter released her self-titled debut album, a 16-track set featuring hit "Boo'd Up on October 12th, 2018.