British singer Ella Mai is scared about bringing kids up in America despite her love for her adopted home.
The British singer moved to New York with her mum aged 12, before returning to the U.K. after she graduated from high school. She found success in the U.S. last year (18) with her hit Boo’d Up, which earned her two Grammy Award nominations, and is now based in Los Angeles.
“I was always dubious about raising kids in America,” she tells British newspaper The Times.
Asked if this is due to gun violence, the R&B adds: “Just everything. It’s a little bit scary to think about it. Not that I’m planning on starting a family any time soon.”
Ella, full name Ella Mai Howell, also declined to comment on whether she has a current beau she could start a family with.
The 24-year-old’s worries about raising a kid in L.A. may be down to her own difficulties in adapting to life in New York when a teen.
“When I first moved there I hated it. Being 12,13, and being taken out of where I grew up,” she explains. “At my school in London, everyone knew everyone. In New York, I didn’t know anyone apart from my two cousins.
“I felt like there was so much attention on me that I didn’t want because I was already trying to figure out this new place. I was always chosen to read passages from the textbook because everyone wanted to hear me talk.”
However, she eventually found her feet at school and became a star of her school’s soccer team and sung the U.S. national anthem at her graduation ceremony.
Ella’s Grammy nominations, for Song of the Year and Best R&B Song, mean she is now one of America’s most talked about up-and-coming stars. However, she says she’s planning to attend Sunday’s (10Feb19) ceremony with her mom.
