Laura Mvula is an honest songwriter.
The 'Green Garden' singer led a BRIT Master Class at the British Music Experience at London's The O2 last Thursday (13.02.14) where she advised local music students, members of the BRIT School, youth groups and music enthusiasts to always be as true to themselves when composing tracks.
She said: "I think the main ingredient of good songwriting is honesty."
The star - who is nominated for both Best Female and British Breakthrough Act at this year's BRIT Awards - talked about her beginnings in the music industry, and how scary it was when she finished studies at the Birmingham Conservatoire with a degree in composition and had to get a job as a supply teacher.
She said: "I was privileged to have the experience of simply focusing on music when I was at The Conservatoire. When I left I was really scared. I had been in this amazing music bubble. Everyone loved each other, but at the same time were competing with each other - so it was this amazingly creative environment. When I left I was faced with the challenge of finding 'a real job.'
"It was a difficult year - I didn't even know what a manager or a producer did!"
Laura, 27, wrote songs on her computer before releasing her first EP 'She' in November 2012 and her debut album 'Sing to the Moon' last year, which was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize 2013.
Previous stars to share their knowledge at BRITs music masterclasses include Emeli Sandé, Rudimental, Imogen Heap, Bashy and Kate Nash.
The BRIT Awards 2014 will be held at The O2 on February 19 and will be broadcast live on ITV.

Suzanne Shaw has been eliminated from 'Dancing on Ice'.
The former Hear'Say singer was up against Kyran Bracken in the skate-off on last night's (16.02.14) show, and although she's been more consistent than the former rugby star throughout the competition, an unlucky stumble during her final routine - which she blamed on her nerves - meant she was voted off by the judges.
She said: "I think it's because I haven't had experience doing the skate-off before. I really wanted to try and make it all the way to the final. I'm just glad we went out on one of our best skates."
Although the 'Pure and Simple' hitmaker made a number of mistakes during the skate-off, her first performance of the night was her strongest yet as she performed a well delivered routine to Alannah Myles' 'Black Velvet' and scored a personal best of 37 points, receiving full marks from judge Karen Barber.
The 32-year-old star won the ice skating contest in 2008 and returned for the all-star series this year with professional skater Matt Evers as her partner but she's now been booted off following the 'girls versus boys' challenge, leaving just five celebrities to battle it out for a place in the final.
Following Suzanne's departure her skate-off contender Kyran, 2009 winner Ray Quinn, former 'EastEnders' actor Sam Attwater, Beth Tweddle and 'Emmerdale's Hayley Tamaddon remain in the competition.

'Splash!' is facing the axe after losing two million viewers.
The diving competition fronted by Tom Daley ended its second series on Saturday (15.02.14) - with Diversity's Perri Kiely winning the show by beating Dan Osborne, Keith Duffy and Richard Whitehead - but ITV bosses are thought to be unimpressed by falling ratings.
The final instalment of 'Splash!' peaked at 4.4 million viewers compared to 6.5 million for the final last year.
A source told The Sun newspaper: "'Splash!' has been great fun and really captured the mood after the 2012 Olympics but ITV aren't sure it will stand the test of time.
"At the moment they're looking at ideas to replace it as well as more ideas for Tom."
The show has struggled in the ratings against BBC One's 'The Voice', which was moved to January this year after losing its own ratings battle with 'Britain's Got Talent' in April last year.
The singing competition entertained some 8.7 million viewers on Saturday night.
However, an ITV spokesperson insists it's too early to tell whether 'Splash!' will come back for a new series.
They said: "No decision has been made."

Peter Capaldi will battle the Daleks in his first series of 'Doctor Who'.
The Twelfth Doctor will fulfil a childhood dream of fighting the Time Lord's most famous adversary in the new series of the BBC sci-fi drama, despite producers initially wanting the series to be Dalek-free.
According to the Daily Star newspaper, Peter, 55, told show bosses how it had been a lifelong dream to battle with the metallic villains and so they have been written into the new series.
The actor - who has been a 'Doctor Who' fan his whole life - famously wrote to TV magazine Radio Times as a teenager, gushing over the Daleks.
In one letter he wrote: "May I congratulate you on the Terry Nation Dalek story with the twist in the tail.
"The Dalek construction plans will have no doubt inspired many a school to build their own Daleks.
"Who knows, the country could be invaded by an army of school Daleks! Ah, but we'd have Dr Who to protect us!"
Peter is currently filming the latest series of 'Doctor Who' with Jenna-Louise Coleman, who plays his companion Clara Oswald.
The show will return to BBC One in the autumn.

Sheridan Smith will play Cilla Black in a new ITV drama.
The 'Mrs. Biggs' actress is set to portray the legendary British entertainer in a new three-part series titled 'Cilla'.
The drama will follow Cilla's rise to fame in 1960s Liverpool, including her friendship with The Beatles after catching the attention of their manager Brian Epstein, who would go on to turn her into a recording artist.
The series will also depict Cilla's early on/off relationship with her former husband Bobby Willis, a baker who struggled with the star's determination to succeed as a singer.
Sheridan said: "I am thrilled to be playing Cilla, as she is a British icon. In the '60s, as a young girl from Liverpool, she had numerous number ones and sang with The Beatles, her life story is fascinating."
The series was written by Oscar-nominated writer Jeff Pope and will be directed by Paul Whittington, who also directed 'Mrs. Biggs'.
ITV's director of drama Steve November said: "Jeff's scripts offer an extraordinary insight into Cilla's humble beginnings and meteoric rise to chart success. He captures Liverpool life back in the '60s through her eyes and it's fascinating to thinking of her hanging out back stage at the Cavern Club with The Beatles."
The series will begin shooting in Liverpool next month.

Simon Cowell has taken his son home from hospital.
The 54-year-old music mogul was seen carrying baby Eric - who was born on Friday (14.02.14) - in a car seat out of New York's Lenox Hill Hospital yesterday (16.02.14), and he, his son and girlfriend Lauren Silverman got into a waiting vehicle, which was believed to have taken them to a nearby hotel.
And the youngster has already settled in at home with his parents' beloved puppies Squiddly and Diddly.
Simon tweeted last night: "The last three days have been incredible. Eric Lauren sqiddly and diddly all happy.(sic)"
Though Eric is just a few days old, insiders say Simon is already a great dad.
One source told The Sun newspaper: "Eric is a lovely baby. He's very calm, sweet and very handsome.
"Simon's loving every minute and won't put little Eric down. He's taken to it like a natural and can't stop smiling."
The 'X Factor' boss has already shared a number of pictures of Eric on his twitter page.
Alongside a picture of himself cradling the little boy into his chest, he wrote: "I never knew how much love and pride I would feel."
And a photograph of himself, Lauren and the baby was captioned:"Mum, Dad and Eric. Now two days old."
Alongside a third picture, just of the baby, he wrote: "Now you can see how very handsome little Eric is."
Simon is expected to return to the UK later this week for the 'Britain's Got Talent' auditions.

Kim Kardashian says Kanye West's marriage proposal was the "surprise of a lifetime".
The 'Stronger' hitmaker asked the brunette beauty to be his wife in front of all her loved ones at AT&T Park in San Francisco on her 33rd birthday last October and Kim - who has eight-month-old daughter North with the rapper - later admitted she had no idea what was going to happen.
Speaking on 'Keeping Up with the Kardashians', which aired the proposal in the US last night (16.02.14), she said: "I'm, like, shaking. It is so crazy to me that this is all happening. Kanye really outdid himself. It feels like I'm in a dream. It's just the most amazing experience. I am the biggest investigator, so the fact that I didn't see one sign of this happening is the surprise of a lifetime."
Kim wasn't the only one impressed by Kanye's proposal, which saw an orchestra play Lana Del Ray's 'Young & Beautiful' as fireworks went off and the words 'Pleease marry meee!' appeared on a screen as the rapper got down on one knee.
Her sister Khloe said: "I really am in a movie right now. This is so spectacular. It's so stunning and breathtaking...it's truly a magical moment."
While Kanye initially wanted a smaller diamond for his fiancee's ring, she was overjoyed with the 15-carat stone.
She said: "It really is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I just can't believe I'm engaged."
Only Kim's mother Kris Jenner knew exactly what Kanye was planning and she was full of praise for her future son-in-law.
She said: "I know first hand the real Kanye. He is a sweetheart with a huge heart for everyone that he loves. He's so many things that I don't think a lot of people get the chance to see."

Rihanna has been offered a settlement of over $10 million in her legal battle against her former accountants.
The 'Diamonds' hitmaker had taken action against Peter Gounis and his firm Berdon LLP, claiming their poor financial advice had led to her losing a reported $9 million in 2009, and though she was initially suing for $35 million, the New York Post newspaper claims the firm have offered a settlement and the paperwork to end the case will be signed later this week.
In her claim, Rihanna - whose real name is Robyn Fenty - said the firm advised her to buy a $7 million house, even though they knew she was "bleeding cash".
Her lawyer Edward Estrada wrote in legal documents: "The defendants advised Ms. Fenty by e-mail that purchasing a home in Los Angeles 'would be a good investment' despite knowing Ms. Fenty was experiencing financial difficulties."
The accountant was said to be aware the house was rotting from water and mould damage and needed over $1 million spending on improvements and repair work. The property was later sold at a $2 million loss.
In the lawsuit, Rihanna also claimed her 2009 'Last Girl on Earth' tour was losing money but she was never warned of this by the accountants.
Berdon previously claimed Rihanna's own "financial action or inaction" or those of people working for her caused her to lose money, not their decision-making.
They also dismissed the 'Only Girl in the World' star's previous objection she paid an "above-average" commission of 22 per cent as something she had signed off on herself.
The 25-year-old star is now worth an estimated $43 million.

Michael Fassbender was shot "point blank" when the '12 Years a Slave' cast and crew went paintballing.
The 36-year-old actor admits his role as abusive slave master Edwin Epps in the movie so him targetted by his co-stars when they took part in a light-hearted teambuilding exercise.
Speaking on the red carpet at last night's (16.02.14) BAFTA Awards in London, he said: "We went paintballing, I just remember Chiwetel [Ejiofor] saying my dad said to him 'cover me' and went running."
Asked if his role meant he was singled out, he added to E! News: " got it everywhere, it was like I had hickeys all over my head, I got shot point blank. Some people came with their own gear."
The 'Shame' star was thrilled with his role in the movie as the story had reduced him to tears, and so he had asked his frequent collaborator, director Steve McQueen for any role in the film, even if it was just "a few days" work.
He said: "I knew when I read it it was such an amazing story, it brought me to tears at the end of the read, it was just an extraordinary story, I'd never even heard of this guy Solomon Northup.
"I didn't know anything about him or the book so when Steve passed the script on to me, I just wanted to do anything, even if it was just a couple of days work. I knew it was an important piece then."
Because of the serious subject matter, Michael says the set felt very "intense", which was why the cast and crew regularly socialised together, such as the paintballing day.
He added: "On set the intensity was pretty crazy every day because of the responsibility...[So] we hung out as much as we could, had dinners, there was a lot of trust there."

Harvey Weinstein has revealed Dame Judi Dench has had his name tattooed on her butt.
The 61-year-old film producer worked with Dench on 'Philomena' and as the pair caught up at the BAFTAs on Sunday night (16.02.14) the 79-year-old actress unveiled the body art, which she has had done as a permanent tribute to the film.
Dench showed off her intimate inking to Weinstein and Oprah Winfrey, who acted as a "witness" to prove the tattoo really does exist.
During an appearance on British talk show 'Lorraine', he revealed: 'Philomena' has done well and Dame Judi Dench has had another tattoo, seriously! She did a tattoo years ago and then she dumped me for Kevin Spacey then she dumped him for Johnny Depp and then dumped him for Daniel Craig but because 'Philomena' is doing so well I think she's trying to tell me that there's a chance. Last night, she showed me a tattoo with my name and she flashed Oprah Winfrey - it's on her butt! She is so naughty, and I'm not kidding. Oprah said, 'I'm the witness.' "
Weinstein insists the British Academy of Film and Television Awards, which were held at the Royal Opera House in London, are always a highlight of awards season, and that has a lot to do with host Stephen Fry.
The Weinstein Company founder - who was accompanied to the ceremony by his fashion designer wife Georgina Chapman - was thrilled that 'Philomena' won the Adapted Screenplay prize as he believes the BAFTAs are a good indicator as to what can happen at the Oscars, at which the movie is nominated in four categories.
He said: "First of all (with the BAFTAs) you have the secret weapon that's almost as good anything, anywhere, and that's Stephen Fry. He is the most articulate, funny and sarcastic man. Some of the things he gets away with, in America he'd be in jail for saying half that stuff. Literally the cops would arrest him on stage ... The BAFTAs are extremely important on the way to the Oscars because it all ends with The Oscars - which are the grandfather of all of this. But the British awards really point the way now ... It's all one road leading to the Oscars and this year it's going to be a tight race."

Leonardo DiCaprio admits 'The Wolf of Wall Street' was like "organised chaos".
The 39-year-old actor was nominated for best actor at the BAFTAs last night (16.02.14) for his portrayal of Jordan Belfort in the comedy, but he believes the director Martin Scorsese helped him explore his role in-depth thanks to his choice of set.
He explained to the BBC: "Martin Scorsese really created this set in a really specific way, it was like organised chaos. So we were all kind of living in a giant bosch painting. It was like the modern day Roman empire ... we wanted to make a portrait of our culture today. So it's really thanks to him and this character really took on the life of its own."
The 'Titanic' star first worked with the renowned director on 'The Gangs of New York' followed by 'The Aviator', 'The Departed' and 'Shutter Island' but their relationship became even closer working on their latest project - which took them seven years to bring to the bring screen - but he wasn't expecting to be nominated for the award.
Speaking to E! on the red carpet at London's Royal Opera House, he said: "I don't predict any of these things and have no idea what's going to happen, but to be here with a film like this that takes a lot of chances is an amazing feeling. This is really the second film in my career I got behind and did everything to get made."

Steve McQueen was told by a school teacher he'd never be anything more than a plumber.
The 44-year-old director - who suffers with dyslexia - saw his film '12 Years A Slave' honoured as the Best Film at the BAFTA awards last night (16.02.14), but he admits he was once told he'd only ever make it as a tradesman.
He said: "No one cared. No one invested any time or care into these people -- many very talented -- who they'd marked for manual labour."
The gripping movie tells the true story of black New Yorker Solomon Northup, who was kidnapped in 1841 and sold into slavery, before being subjected to racism by his white "owners".
He added to The Sun newspaper: "I think there is amnesia about this subject and I just wanted to wake people up.
"I'd always thought it would be interesting to do a film about slavery. There were no films about it and I wanted to fill that void and see if I could grapple with it."
While accepting his award last night, McQueen said he hoped the number of people living in slavery would decrease and there would be no need for another film addressing the horrifying issue.
He said: "[There are] 21 million people in slavery now as we sit here. I just hope there will not be another 120 years of ambivalence that allows another filmmaker to make a film like this."