Jordin Sparks admires her mother's ''inner strength''.

The 24-year-old singer, who has been dating Jason Derulo for just over three years, admits she looks up to her mum Jodi Jackson because she's an inspiration to her.

Speaking to PEOPLE.com, she said: ''It's her inner strength and courage. When I was about 12, she told me not to lock my bedroom door. But I did. What did she do? She took my door completely off! It wasn't like she said, 'You're in trouble,' it was, 'You have no door for six months!'''

The 'Battlefield' hitmaker - who shot to fame after winning 'American Idol' when she was just 17 - insists it was her mum who encouraged her to pursue a career in singing.

She explained: ''We were watching 'American Idol', and I said, 'I want to do that.' And she said, 'We will do whatever it takes.'''

Meanwhile, Jordin, who also works out with Jodi, has recently lost 50lbs after deciding she needed to make changes to her lifestyle in order to improve her health.

She said previously: ''I had gotten really sick. And I was about to celebrate my birthday and I was like, 'I should be in the prime of my life right now. I shouldn't be feeling like this. I really need to make my health a priority'.''