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I used to be affected by criticism thrown at me, and I would get really down. But I got to a point where I just decided to go for it, no matter what negativity is around you.
Yuna -
Sometimes when you're a songwriter, you kind of have this egotistic thing: you just want to write something that you love, and you don't care about if people like it or not, but personally, I want to write something that people can jive to.
Yuna
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People say, 'You should let your hair out; you shouldn't be oppressed - you're not in Malaysia anymore. You should show your curves and be proud of it.' But I am proud - it's my choice to cover up my body. I'm not oppressed - I'm free.
Yuna -
I used to read a lot of fashion magazines: my favourite was 'Nylon.' I used to cut out all the pictures from magazines, and I had this book where I would keep all of the stuff that inspired me.
Yuna -
I'm based here in L.A., but I think in the future I might consider settling down in Malaysia when I start a family.
Yuna -
Whenever I Google for clothes, I always look at what Angelina Jolie is wearing. I love Sienna Miller, and I really like Rihanna's style, too. There's the edgy girl, classy girl, and the Bohemian chic girl. I guess I'm all of that combined into one.
Yuna -
To have a sense of style, it shows you know yourself. People like that.
Yuna -
I use the 'Too Faced Chocolate Bar Eye Shadow' Palette every day. I've tried a bunch of stuff, but this is my favorite. For eyebrows, I use the 'Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow' Pomade in Dark Brown, and for mascara, I don't use anything else but 'Urban Decay Perversion' Mascara.
Yuna
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I didn't expect to have music as my main thing. I always thought I was going to be a lawyer. When I graduated, I was doing really well with my music in Malaysia. I had stable income, and I had really good momentum in the music industry, so I had to make a decision whether to stop that and continue being a lawyer.
Yuna -
I was doing quite well in Malaysia... Everyone was so excited about my music, and they started accepting me as an artist.
Yuna -
Home, to me, is where I am and where I feel most comfortable. Obviously, Malaysia is home. In L.A., my home is my apartment because that's my Malaysia.
Yuna -
I've found just the right amount of balance in my life. I'm this pop artist in America, but I'm also Malaysian. And I'm also Muslim.
Yuna -
I grew up listening to a lot of different types of music, and R&B in particular was something that I loved - Aaliyah, Usher, Alicia Keys, TLC.
Yuna -
I guess music is very global.
Yuna
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When I was younger I would go to the airport with my friends and drive out 2 A.M., 3 A.M. in the morning and just hang out until sunrise watching planes fly in and fly out. Just sit there and dream about how, one day, that's going to be us in those flights. We're gonna be one of those people with places to go.
Yuna -
Being in the spotlight, you know, you tend to kind of forget who you are. And being an artist... it could be a very superficial job. It could be very pretentious as well.
Yuna -
Once in a while, I write in Malay and work on something fun that's more for the local Malaysian market, and when that happens, it's always something really special; it speaks volumes that I'm doing it for my fans who have been there for me since day one.
Yuna -
Being a musician, it's my job to be real and be true to whoever I am. Hopefully that will inspire other people. I hope it inspires people to be themselves and be comfortable in your own skin.
Yuna -
One of the reasons I picked up the guitar is because I saw a video of Feist performing in Paris.
Yuna -
I grew up in a town called Subang Jaya, and made a lot of friends from around Kuala Lumpur.
Yuna
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A lot of people think that because I'm from Malaysia, I'm driven by Malaysian sound, but actually, it's mostly just my melodies.
Yuna -
I think I draw my inspiration from a lot of conversations that I had with people or my friends and combine them together with my own personal experience.
Yuna -
I love Feist. I love Francoise Hardy. She was a French singer-songwriter in the '60s who was pretty huge. I think I'm drawn to her sincerity. I love Fiona Apple, too - she's quirky and really honest in her lyrics.
Yuna -
Sometimes I have a melody in my head; sometimes it's just a verse. I read lines from a book or movies that I watch and grab a few quotes and start writing on paper. From there, I record a really rough version and work on the song.
Yuna