Janelle Monae reveals the books that changed her life

17 May 2018

Janelle Monae has shared a list of the 15 most influential books of her life.

Janelle Monae

The 32-year-old singer is a self-confessed sci-fi fanatic, but Janelle's influences extend beyond one specific genre, with her list also featuring the biography of Malcolm X, the American human rights activist.

Other well-known books that appear in Janelle's list - which she's shared with Consequence of Sound - include 'Brave New World' by Aldous Huxley and 'Wild Seed' by Octavia Butler.

The 'Make Me Feel' hitmaker has previously spoken of her love of sci-fi, explaining that it allows the reader to "draw parallels between the present and the future".

She shared: "Science fiction is just an exciting and new way of telling universal stories and it allows the reader to come to the conclusion and draw parallels between the present and the future."

Janelle has also credited Malcolm X with "[bringing] forth the revolutionary in me".

Janelle recently released her new album 'Dirty Computers' and during her promotional tour for the LP she revealed herself to be pansexual, meaning she's attracted to people regardless of their sex or gender identity.

Asked whether she wants to pose the same questions regarding sexuality as her mentor Prince, Janelle previously explained: "I think that is important for people to be proud of their identity. I am very proud to be a queer, young black woman in America. I'm proud of who I am."

Janelle also claimed it is important for her to be open about her sexuality so she can help any of her fans going through the same thing.

She said: "I love myself, and I want for all the 'Dirty Computers' around the world to feel seen, to be heard, and to feel celebrated and to know that I'm right there with you."

Janelle Monae's most influential books:

'The Complete Stories' by Isaac Asimov

'Wild Seed' by Octavia Butler

'Built to Last' by Jim Collins

'Brave New World' by Aldous Huxley

'The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology' by Ray Kurzweil

'Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind' by Yuval Noah Harari

'Zen Guitar' by Philip Toshio Sudo

'The Big Moo' by Seth Godin

'The Autobiography of Malcolm X' by Malcolm X

'Confessions of a Political Hitman' by Stephen Marks

Writing Better Lyrics by Pat Pattison