I have never done any other job. I have sung in bands since I was 15. I left school completely unqualified. I have no other training.

Within three months I had gone from being this black sheep of the town to suddenly becoming a pop star.

I think that you have to experience darkness to feel empathy. For all of my failings - and I have many - I do have a complete ability to emphasize with people. And that all goes down to being "other." When you're young you think otherness is a state only you possess. When you get older you realize, "Actually, there's so many of us." In that we find community.

It is interesting seeing young people these days and watching how unimportant music is in their lives compared with our generation.

I had been with the label since I was 21. The label wanted shiny pop but I didn't. I found a little independent and we've got all these great reviews in England and now it has gone gold.

I have never done any other job. I have sung in bands since I was 15. I left school completely unqualified. I have no other training.

I've always been "other." I've always felt odd; I have always felt foreign in the environment I've been in. When you are young, that is a really uncomfortable thing to feel. As an older woman I really embrace it.