Welcome to the wonderful talk hosted by Marie Claire Editor-in-chief Nicki Ogunnaike. Every week, Nikki sits down with attractive women — entertainers, entrepreneurs, creators, athletes, and changemakers — to discuss money, power, and style. "Well-behaved" women have long been discouraged from talking about these topics - style should be effortless, and conversations about money and power should not be "appropriate," "demure," or "nice.""But the definition of Nikki's lovely story is one that all parties walk away feeling empowered. You can hear a nice story with Nikki Ogunnaike on Apple Podcast and Spotify.

Even as a child star surrounded by adults on the set of Nickelodeon's victory, Victoria Justice was not afraid to defend herself.

In the debut episode of Marie Claire's podcast A lovely story with Nicki Ogunnaike, Justice recalls how she gained the confidence to speak for herself while starring in Victory.

"I was in a world surrounded by young, mostly adults, but I think I recognized my power," says Justice, who appears on the cover of Marie Claire's music issue.

The singer and actress explain that she had a strong support system that she could later model herself. "I had a lot of guidance in my life at that time, and I also have a very strong mother who is not afraid to speak,"" said Justice, who also appeared on Nickelodeon's Zoe 101 and before leading her own show.

So, when it was time to be the first on the winning call sheet — Justice played an aspiring singer attending a performing arts high school during the three-season run from 2010 to 2013 - she felt the power to talk about how she was being treated.

Justice recalls, "I realized that even though I was 10 years old, I still knew what I was talking about. I'm not an idiot I have a voice and with respect, I'm going to let you know how I feel. And if I feel like I don't like the way I'm being treated, or whatever it is, I'm going to express it.

The Motoko Star shares that having both proper guidance and her experience of winning continues to influence the way she carries herself in today's industry, especially as she pursues a career as an independent musician.

"I think it's a trickle as I am now," the performer says. "I'm definitely advocating for myself. I am not afraid to speak.

She continues, "I think it's important to always say something if I feel I need something different, or if I don't like the progress of things, or if something goes wrong. It's like a squeaky wheel being oiled at the end of the day. Like, you just can not be afraid to at least ask or speak out for yourself. If you are not going to, then who likes?"