[6][7][8] She is the youngest child of English music producer Cameron McVey and Swedish singer Neneh Cherry.

[8][14] At age four, she taught herself to read through phonetics and audiobooks, but soon developed anxiety from being sensitive to her surroundings and being bullied due to racial backgrounds.

It was so successful that it landed her in the front row of international runway shows with her mother Neneh Cherry, including the likes of Stella McCartney and the Paris Fashion Week.

[26] Mabel's stylist is her Swedish high school friend Simone Beyene [27] Mabel told Swedish morning show Nyhetsmorgon that she moved to London as soon as she graduated Rytmus musikgymnasium in Stockholm because she found the London R&B scene appetizing.

[28] Mabel released her debut single "Know Me Better" in July 2015,[29] which caught the attention of BBC Radio 1 DJ Annie Mac, who made the song her Tune of the Week.

Just after leaving Stockholm for London, The Guardian's Tshepo Mokoena spotlighted Mabel as one of Sweden's rising stars in a profile of three new Swedish R&B singers: Better Swede symphony: how a new generation is redefining Scandipop.

In a genre once typified by blonde singers and ice-cool beats, artists like Mabel, Zhala and Seinabo Sey are multi-racial and multi-genre, yet create music indebted to Sweden's pop heritage[30]In March 2017, after the releases of the 2015 and 2016 singles "My Boy My Town" and "Thinking Of You", she released "Finders Keepers" featuring British rapper Kojo Funds, which reached the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart in late 2017.

Following the January 2018 release of a second Not3s collaboration, "Fine Line", Mabel opened for English singer Harry Styles during the European part of the second leg of a tour in the support of his debut studio album.

[37] "Don't Call Me Up" was nominated for the "Song of The Year" award at the Swedish Radio P3's 2020 P3 Guld Awards[38][39] Following the November 2019 release of her Christmas single Loneliest Time Of Year, in December 2019, Mabel performed at the Jingle Bell Ball, alongside other artists such as Ava Max, Rita Ora, Regard and The Script.

[40] From January to March 2020, Mabel embarked on the High Expectations Tour across North America, the United Kingdom and Europe.

[44][45][46][47] Later that year, in July, Mabel collaborated with AJ Tracey on "West Ten"[48] and released an acoustic version of High Expectations.

[56] The second single, "Good Luck", featuring Jax Jones and Swedish EDM duo Galantis was released on 18 March 2022.

[60][61] While hosting the show, Mabel said she had been writing new songs with her brother Marlon, and with support from her parents and her boyfriend Preye Crooks.

On 19 January 2024, a remix of "Finders Keepers" by South African DJ and music producer Jaydon Lewis was released on streaming platforms.

On 11 October, McVey released her fourth single, “Stupid Dumb” featuring Ty Dolla $ign.

On 24 January 2025, Mabel released her fifth single from her upcoming album „All Over You” featuring Ghanian rapper King Promise.