SEPANG — Moody. That’s how singer Jillian Banks — who popularly goes by her last name — describes her fashion sense.

“I like feeling very feminine and very strong. I like wearing things that flow a little bit and, on stage, I like feeling like this powerful witch-goddess. I also like feeling sexy without showing too much. There are so many ways to feel empowered and beautiful,” she said.

But listening to Banks’ debut album, Goddess, which was released last month, she could well be describing her music. There are tracks like Stick, which definitely fall in the “sexy without showing too much” category (she called it “the spiciest track I’ve ever made”); and Someone New, while being a song about hurt, is very feminine and strong. But ask anyone else who has heard the album, and chances are they’ll describe it as moody. She sounds almost like Lana Del Rey and Fiona Apple’s musical love-child, but not as severe.

For Banks, putting the album together was like self-acceptance. “It was putting my heart out and accepting every thought that I had — and have — whether it was heartache or anger or feeling like the sexiest goddess in the whole world or the weakest, most fragile human. Writing and putting it out was the most liberating, incredible thing.

“I’ve been writing for 10 years and keeping it so quiet and secretive for so long that I had so much material that I thought represented me,” she added. “I feel that the songs on the album touch on every layer of what makes me who I am at this moment.”

Interestingly, the singer said that while she preferred music that was soothing — citing artistes such as Fiona Apple, Lauren Hill and Majid Jordan as her current faves — she added that she loved “vibing out” to Missy Elliot’s music, such as Sock It To Me. “She’s like the ultimate goddess, the most empowering, juiciest woman in the whole world. On this tour, part of my warm-up was vibing to Missy Elliot. You can probably find the videos on my Instagram.”

If nothing else, her music has taken Banks to places that she never thought she’d see, such as Singapore. The singer will perform here next January at the Laneway music festival.

“I’ve actually always wanted to go to Singapore!” she said. “A year and a half ago, before all my music started coming out, I was thinking that I don’t want to die without seeing places like Japan, India, Singapore … but it was like, how would I go to these places?

“But now that I’m touring, I’m able to.”

And who knows, you might even spot her “vibing out” to Missy Elliot.

St Jerome’s Laneway Festival Singapore happens on Jan 24 at Gardens By 
The Bay. Tickets available at SISTIC 
and EventClique.