Joshua Scott AS Media

I gently twiddled my thumbs as I waited for Mila to meet me by Charing Cross station. After a while a train slinked into the station and a very excited looking young woman bounded through the doors and exploded through the barriers with the joyful bleep from her oyster card. She swiftly tucked it away I her jacket pocket and screeched to a halt about an inch in front of face. “Hi!” she exclaimed, “Sorry I’m late, I missed the bus”. A firm handshake and brief chat led into us walking briskly from the station and down towards Trafalgar Square.

She immediately jumps into friendly chat, “how have you been?”, “what have you been up to?”, “It’s absolutely lovely out today, never been so warm in London”. I can barely get a word in edgeways but I don’t really mind, she’s absolutely charming and wonderful to be around. Eventually she pauses from a light breath, fixes her hair and says, “sorry, I’ve been a chatterbox, I do this a lot”. “It’s fine” I reply, “Nice to know you’re awake”.  She giggles and turns off into a café, orders a caramel latte for herself, a mocha for me then finds the nearest window seat and collapses into it. “Right, what did you want to ask me? Fire away” she says while she calls I immediately pull out my notepad and pen and sit in the opposite chair.

“What have you been up to recently? Anything we should know?”

She contemplates the question for second, “Within the last month I haven’t done a huge amount, just a few gigs here and there. I did go on the Graham Norton show which was absolutely amazing, Graham really is a great laugh.” She paused to sip her coffee and fix her hair, “Within the last year I have done more than ever thought I would. My debut album was a huge success for me. I was number 1 on the Billboard Hot 40 for two weeks! It felt like a dream, I literally had to count to ten a calm down after I got the news.” She had a sparkle in her eye and a huge grin while she said this, I could tell she really was proud of herself. “I was immediately expected to start touring which was really tough for me, I’ve never been traveling by myself before and I found myself feeling really homesick at times. I do miss being able to just sit in my room, producing some random tracks and putting some vocals over the top of it. But I guess that’s what’s made me who I am today, which I can’t be upset about” she settles in her chair like she’s exhausted the question and ushers me to give her another while she takes another sip of her coffee.

“You said you miss producing music in your room, do you feel that you can’t have that sort of freedom anymore? And did you have any major problems releasing an album completely on you own?”

A large sigh escapes her lips and she wipes coffee foam from under her nose, “I loved the freedom of making music completely by myself but I adore my team and they make production a lot less tedious. Well that’s the short answer, it’s really quite a complex mix of emotions but overall I can say that I am perfectly happy with the way things are at the moment. My team is perfectly happy to step back and let me take charge of my work so I can do my own thing, but they always come in at the end to offer tips that I really do appreciate. “ a look of concern crossed her face, then she leans in and says “I’m already working on something, I’m not saying what, but it’s something that I think you’re gonna like” She almost squeals with excitement, “sorry, I’ve been dying to tell someone something! OMG my manager is going to kill me, oh dear.” She laughs loudly, wipes a tear from her eye and pushes back her hair, “sorry, I’m not good at this being famous business yet”.

“That’s absolutely fine, don’t worry! But that’s an interesting point, how have you actually dealt with the sudden fame? I’ve never seen someone so young rocket to the top as fast as you have. Has it affected you?”

“Ooh” she says cheekily, “that’s a good one. I don’t think it’s changed me too much, I mean, I’m definitely much more confident now and I’m super pleased with that. I’m still a complete scatterbrain though! I cannot organize anything! Hold on a sec.” She takes a hair band of her wrist and ties back her beautiful blonde hair into a messy ponytail, “my hair was annoying me” she says quickly. I let out a small laugh as I continue scribbling writing notes, “don’t worry, this is my first big story and I’m a wreck”. We laugh together and continue with the question. “Anyway, umm” she tips her head slightly then rests it on her hand, “I’ve lost my train of thought. Oh yeah! Fans! Fans, fans, fans! I love them so much, they mean the world to me” her face lights up as she speaks, “There’s so many of them now and it’s difficult to keep in touch but I’d definitely say that my fans are the biggest thing I had to adjust to. It’s just weird having such a huge amount of people that are all there for you. I’m almost always talking to them in my free time on Tumblr or twitter. I feel I have to be there for them as they’re always there for me.”

I put down my pen and paper, “that should be enough” I say, “thanks very much”. Mila polishes off her coffee and places the cup down on the table, “it’s been a pleasure, and you’ve been lovely to talk to”. I blush slightly as she curls up into the large chair she’s situated herself into, “why don’t you why stay here a while longer and talk some more, but no notepads this time”. Her smile is incredibly warm and genuine, I can’t help but refuse. I snuggle up into my chair and we engage in another long conversation. Mila really has surprised me, she’s incredibly calm and collected, yet she’s still so youthful and completely above it all. She’s impressed me beyond belief and chatting with her has been absolute pleasure.