What does being Kosovan mean to you? How has it shaped you into the woman you are in 2018?

There are almost no words to express how proud I am of my heritage. I performed earlier this year at the Kosovo 10-year Independence Day show and it was such an incredible experience not just for me, but for my family too.

Do you speak to your family in Albanian?

I do, it’s incredibly important to us to keep that.

Is there a book that has changed how you think about the world or yourself?

The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks [a true story written by Rebecca Skloot about an African-American woman whose cancerous cells were taken without her consent for medical research in the Fifties]. I was absolutely absorbed in it, it made me think a lot about what [Henrietta Lacks] gave us and what she left behind, but also how unsettling it is that she is still so largely unknown. It’s a book that, although it is about science and medicine, is also largely, and most importantly, about racism and class. It’s intriguing and thought-provoking but also very frustrating.

I know you used to be a big Spice Girls fan, what does it mean to you that the band is reforming?

I am so excited, the Nineties child in me is freaking out! Their message of girl power – well actually, ‘people power’ as they now put it – is still so relevant today. They stand for everything I believe in and were such trailblazers. As they said, “Every boy and every girl!” It’s always been about equality for all.

Rita Ora’s album Phoenix is out on 23 November. She comes to the UK on her global tour in May 2019, playing London’s O2 on 24 May.

Rita Ora on why her new album is her most truthful work yet