Growing up in Leciester surrounded by music, Mahalia was already playing open mic nights by the age of 12. By the time she was 13 Ed Sheeran was bigging her up. The singer has spent the past few years building a live reputation with some choice gigs, supporting the likes of Emeli Sande, Ed Sheeran, Kwabs, Lianne La Havas, providing the main vocal for Rudimental's ‘We The Generation’ track. Recently she stunned a Great Escape audience in silent awe. Just turned 18, and already with two EPs under her belt, the future is looking very bright for this extremely talented and engaging singer and songwriter. In the lead up to her appearance at Love Supreme Festival, I asked her a few questions.

Where are you and what are you doing today?
I'm in my bedroom, getting ready to go to college. I've been in Birmingham for the last four years, going to college.

Still at college!? I take it you didn't leave Leicester to go to Birmingham on your own.?
Me and my parents and my little brother all moved together so that I could go to school. And my little brother has just started school here. Yeah, we're all really close.

I hear you really love your little brother.
Yeah. I do! He's so smart.

What are you studying at college?
When I started I went to study acting. Now I'm studying dance.

And you've stuck it out despite the music making?
I did stick it out. I decided a couple of years ago before I went to sixth form that I would try and stick it out.

I feel like a lot of people, even some of my friends, felt I shouldn't stay. They thought I should pursue my career in music. But, when I was 16 I completely knew I wasn't ready, and my parents knew I wasn't ready. Ever since, everyone has supported me in that.

When do you finish college?
It finishes today! I am going in to finally sign off, put my signature on a sheet and say goodbye!

Do you know what your result might be?
I'll find out my grade today. Although we did kind of find out a week ago and I got the highest grade, which is wicked. So, I'm happy.

So, you’re going to have a party tonight?
Not tonight. We have a big leavers do in a couple of weeks.

I guess you are into school!?
I am! I've had a few days recently where I'm like, 'oh no, I don't want to go'. But, it's the whole social side it gives you. I'll miss my friends. But, I'm ready to move on.

I saw you at The Great Escape recently. That was a special show!
I really was surprised. I'd arrived earlier and it was quite empty, so I went out there with no expectations. But I was completely shocked. Everyone sat down (on the floor). So lovely, such a nice vibe, and good energy in that room.

It was silent in there for you?
They were silent! That is always lovely, but it makes you so nervous. But it was nice and respectful.

Do you usually perform on your own?
Yes, although I do have a band I work with on bigger gigs, but recently I have been honing my solo set; really, really working an audience on my own, with just a guitar and keys. I also have a three-piece which I hope to bring to Love Supreme. It's still stripped back and acoustic, with someone on drums and a guitarist. It's a nice mixture.

I've read that festivals are in your blood.
They are. Festivals were like my holiday when I was a kid. Instead of going on a plane, I remember getting into a car, driving for hours down the road and heading into the festival. I'm such a festival girl. I try and hide it now, but I really am.

I reckon you'll enjoy Love Supreme.
I think that's why I am so excited. It's clearly all about the music. It seems so fresh. I hadn't heard of it till this year. It looks chilled out.

You're a fantastic songwriter, able to tell little personal stories that really engage audiences. And you started writing songs from such an early age.
I find it a bit strange when I think about me as a writer. The thing I find about writing songs is when they are written you forget about writing them. About how each line and word felt. I know I started writing when I was 11 and I wrote this one song, 'Speak To Me'. And my Dad was a songwriter and plays guitar, and my mum was s songwriter, and I think I always wanted to do what my family did. I was the youngest then, and I wrote this song for a competition in Leicester, and then I wrote another song, and then another, and one of them was quite good and I kept going. I always loved English poetry when I was at high school. From the age of 11 I was completely into writing and into poetry. It was always going come out.

Your songs are very personal, but do you ever write from an observational point of view?
They are all definitely personal songs. I definitely always found the observational thing harder, but as I've got older, the songs I've written recently I've tended to look out more. I think it's important to look out and not just look in. If it's too personal then you're not always relatable.

So, writing and performing music was something you knew you wanted to do from an early age.
I knew. Definitely. It's taken me the past few years to grow into myself, and know the kind of artist and person I wanted to be. But, I think from a young age I established how I wanted to be perceived.

Have you had any help in developing as an artist?
I don't think the people around me would see it as them helping, but I would see it as that. My family are huge. My dad played with me for a long time when I was younger, and my mum is a singer, and sometimes I would write a song and I didn't know how to finish it and my dad would finish it, or we would write together, or give me a new chord. Or my Mum would be like 'try a different word there'. And, I've got brilliant brothers; one is a writer and a singer and also a rapper, and we actually wrote my song ‘Never Change’. Another brother is a dancer and he helps me creatively, and my little brother inspires me in many ways! And there's people I have written with in the past, who I have a love and respect for.

How did you get a label deal at such a young age?
I always get asked that and I honestly don't know. I was 13 when I signed to Asylum. Now I'm 18 that seems a world away. It was a bit weird, I did a few open mics in Leicester and London. I worked with this writer called Amy Wadge, in Wales. And when I was 13 I was really into the Ed Sheeran's Plus(+) album. I actually think a lot of Ed's writing when I was that young really inspired me in my writing. Amy had written with Ed, and Amy and I wrote a few songs together and she took me to see a gig of his in Wolverhampton, and after she took me backstage to meet him. I was completely, ahhh, shocked! 'Oh my gosh, it's Ed Sheeran! I'm 13 and I'm so sad'! But we had a little chat. And he wrote a Tweet about me. 'Look out for this 13 year old girl', something like that. And within a few weeks I'd had meetings with a few labels, and signed with Asylum. It was all very quick.

He recommended me without personally doing so or without physically going to someone, 'do this'. People must have picked up on it. It might not have been that way, but that's how I feel it was.

How important were open mics in helping you develop?
Open mics are the best way. It really helped me. Recently, I went busking in Birmingham, and even that was also very hard. It's kind of the same thing, but open mics can be harder. Some people are there to not listen, while on the street some people are passing by so you don't get that sense of people not listening. You think that at open mics people are either singing or listening, but I've been to a few where it's been terrible.

You've just turned 18. You can actually legally purchase an alcoholic drink in a pub!
Only the last two weeks I've been legal! It's so strange. It's weirder because I haven't been ID'd yet, which is annoying! So, I keep saying 'do you want to see my ID?' Do you want to see it?!

Are you working on an album?
Yes, I'm working on an album, but I'm not sure if it's an album or a mixture. There are producers involved. It's all a bit in the air. I'm still experimenting, I'm still working out if I want to do it acoustically or more produced versions. I think some of the songs sound better stripped back. But, I'm a very musical girl. I love music. I love that big band sound. I think because I like a lot of sound, I've found it hard to know where to go with my music. At the minute it's all let's try this and let's try that.
Jeff Hemmings

Website: mahaliamusic.co.uk
Facebook: facebook.com/mahaliamusic