MC @ PLAY: Janelle Monae

Recreation, Sitting, Indoor games and sports, Games, Poster, Square, Retro style, Costume, Fashion design, Chessboard, — (Image credit: Archive)

MARIE CLAIRE: When did you realize you wanted to become a musician?

JANELLE MONÁE: Creating and being an artist and musician is part of my DNA. I don't remember a time when I had a choice to be anything else—you have that calling. You feel it inside of you.

MC: In what ways did growing up in Kansas influence who you are today?

JM: It's kept me very grounded. I grew up in a working-class family. My mom and dad wore uniforms, whether they were janitors or post-office employees. They worked hard to make sure we had clothes on our backs and food in our mouths. I never, ever want to forget them, so I always wear my uniform—a jacket and pants in black-and-white—to pay homage to them and to remind myself I have work to do.

MC: How have you arrived at your R&B sound?

JM: My family is very musically inclined. Both sides have a very unique style. One is kind of classically trained, and the other is more raw/soul/James Brown. I think that's why I can do a "Smile" or "Sincerely, Jane," then go to a "Tightrope" or "Cold War." I see the soul in a lot of genres, and I take the soul of that genre and I put it in me.