THE truth is finally out about Imogen Heap. The Romford renaissance girl has long attracted the kind of cult following normally associated with grizzled veterans of the music industry, but the world is waking up to this striking, if quirky, singer-songwriter.

Her latest album, the dreamy and atmospheric Ellipse has just picked up a coveted Grammy (for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, in case you were wondering) – just the latest achievement of an artist who has never been content to take the easy road.

Half siren, half techno-geek, this laptop-wielding experimentalist not only writes, but produces and mixes her own material. And despite a good classical grounding – mastering the piano, cello and clarinet – it is her self-taught knack for sequencing, sampling and manipulating her voice, which sets this electronic angel apart.

“I write in terms of the voice being a part of the score, rather than one vocal line hovering over a backing track,” she explains. “I’m so lucky I’ve ended up with such a bizarre voice. It’s distinctive enough to hold itself in whatever music I throw at it.”

Coming to our attention with 1998 debut I Megaphone (an anagram of her name), and as part of electronica duo Frou Frou alongside Madonna and Britney producer Guy Sigsworth, it wasn’t long before her DIY ethic got the better of her.

Her second album 2005’s Speak For Yourself was released on her own record label, Megaphonic Records, and created a quiet storm.

“I signed my first deal when I was just 17 and I had been on one label or another since then,” she recalls.

“I didn’t think I’d end up releasing it on a label of my very own, but once I’d finished I didn’t want to give it all away again – especially as I’d put everything I had into it. I’ve always wanted to find out what I was capable of.

“In the past there were times when I wished I had been listened to, but I’d never really known if I was right, so I’ve done things my way – and I feel nothing can stop me.”

Having her music featured in telly shows like The OC, CSI and Six Feet Under have not done her any harm either.

“Ever since I decided to do this on my own, great things have come my way,” she says.

And it has helped her acquire a ridiculously big fanbase – with who she has a genuine two-way relationship. She enlisted their help in writing her biography for the new album via Tweets submitted by her 300,000 Twitter followers, and she got them to contribute artwork designs. She even invited fans to complete an unfinished track The Song That Never Was – with more than 500 fans adding backing music for their own versions.

Next Thursday she plays the Oxford O2 Academy. She’s looking forward it. Indeed she has a soft spot for the city.

“It’s nice to get to know my own country better as I don’t get to see it very often,” she says. “But last year I was invited to the Technology, Entertainment, Design global conference in Oxford, and it was one of the most inspiring and uplifting events I’ve been to. We all went punting on the last day. I’m looking forward to going back.”

Imogen Heap plays the Oxford O2 Academy next Thursday.