Jhene Aiko's Vibe Magazine Cover: Singer Says 'Souled Out' Album Saved Suicidal Fan, Talks Personal Life Experiences, Love And Music : MStarsNews

Jhené Aiko covers Vibe Vixen in a soultry metallic gown, and deep, dark red lipstick. The singer shares her personal life experiences and how they heavily influence her heart-felt music. One die-hard fan even opens up by explaining that Jhené's Souled Out album saved her life.

Jhené's life experiences have provided her with mountains of material. It's her power up among her peers. While her album hasn't raked in six figures like Chris Brown or Trey Songz's this year (X sold 146,000 and Trigga, 105,000 respectively), her hard life experiences and single mom status can't be manufactured. The 26-year-old mother of one has built a sticky fanbase by penning melodies on heartache, loss and weed. It's a lethal combo for the millennial set, who flock to her catalog like a therapist on-call.

On "W.A.Y.S." -an acronym for her late brother Miyagi's favorite saying "Why aren't you smiling?"- she sings, "I do this for my daughter/That's why I keep going." Jhené's six-year-old child, Namiko Love, also appears on the other Kleenex magnet, "Promises."

One Twitter user, named @QueenieKeiko, wrote, "There are times i wanted to give up but @JheneAiko said 'you gotta keep going' those words i take with me everyday."

Male "Stans" aren't shy to cosign either, like @EpicLordEpicWin, who tweeted, "If the song with your daughter on it doesn't touch somebody's heart they're dead inside."

Then there was Kendra D. Dale who wanted Jhené's words to be a permanent reminder. She tattooed "Why aren't you smiling?" on her inner arm after losing her boyfriend in August and her father as a child.

"I was in such a dark place at the time and tried to end my life on two different occasions," she explains via email. Kendra says Jhené's close-to-home narratives have become personal soundtracks for the tough times. "[Jhené's] entire album have helped me a lot with the healing process," she says. "She tells us everything through her music, without holding back, as if we are her close friends. A true connection is rare in artists these days. She is not in this for the fame, she just wants to tell us her stories and offer understanding to those who can relate."

Growing up, Jhené was more baby Buddha than Little Rascal. With Tupac, Notorious B.I.G., Brandy and Lil' Kim blaring in her household, the youngest of five used pens and notebooks as her playthings. "I just didn't see myself doing what everyone else was doing as far as going to a regular school," she says. At 13, Jhené signed with Epic/ The Ultimate Group (T.U.G.) Records and played B2K affiliate for three years before splitting from the music business to pursue her education. Her biggest lesson arrived in 2011, though, when she gave birth to her daughter. Separated from her baby's father, O'Ryan (singer Omarion's brother), Jhené navigated single motherhood through song.

On sailing soul(s), she meanders gently through the stress of making minimum wage (she was a vegan cafe waitress) while trying to provide for her daughter. "I can't afford more problems/ I don't have time to solve them," she sings on "real now." From losing her brother ("space jam") to contemplating abortion ("you vs. them"), she was a damsel in distress with only her pen to save her. Her inner demons also crept into the buzzy EP Sail Out, like on the eerie outré "What A Life" and "Comfort Inn Ending," a middle finger to a cheater who did her wrong.

"My songs are just me and what I hear in my head," she says. "[My fans are] connecting to it because they have those same thoughts that they've never really said out loud." Although Jhené has already found love in hip-hop producer, Dot Da Genius (she confirmed she had a boyfriend on Hot97 in September), she recognizes her sulky records about past lovers or rough patches are what keeps her fans happy. "It resonates because for most people, it's easy to connect to everything dark," she says. "[It] always overshadows the light... You don't get as much of a strong reaction to a [happy] song [but] I feel like I'll always have a balance of whatever you gravitate towards."

Check out this condensed version of Jhené Aiko's digital cover!