Ella Mai - Ella Mai

The Guardian 80

(10 Summers/Interscope Records)

The curse of the one-hit wonder is a hard one to shake, especially for a newcomer with a platinum-certified international hit such as Boo’d Up. South London-born R&B singer Ella Mai broke through this year while touring this lovestruck anthem in the US – despite it being released almost 12 months prior – and there is pressure for her to cement herself in the scene beyond a single track.

Related: Ella Mai: ‘If it were up to England, Boo’d Up definitely wouldn’t be where it is now’

Pitchfork 66

The perfectly fine debut from the London R&B singer offers a grip of retro, snappy jams without sounding like a pastiche.

The Guardian 60

(Universal)

The British singer-songwriter Ella Mai has found huge success in the States. Handpicked by behemoth hip-hop producer DJ Mustard via Instagram, her schmaltzy, throwback-style R&B track Boo’d Up this year made her the first UK artist to top the US R&B charts since 1992 (the last was Lisa Stansfield’s All Woman).

As a result, Mai’s debut album does feel distinctly American, foregoing the UK’s current love of afrobashment and garage for a sparkling sound that nostalgically nods to 90s favourites. That is, bar the distinctly English-accented, spoken-word interjections, where she announces each letter of her name with a different definition (“E” is for “emotion”, etc), until on Close she spells out, a little cloyingly, “I am Ella Mai”.