I had such a big mouth for so long that it doesn't faze anybody anymore.

Actually, I was having dinner with Michael [Stipe, of R.E.M.] when our second album went platinum, which up until that point was the highest success we'd ever had. And he turned to me during dinner and said, 'Welcome to the deep waters, kid.' I'll never forget that.

Being in a rock band is just an excuse not to get a job

It's important for people to talk and get beyond the wall of Facebook and social media.

If you don't fit into this kind of like gossipy, trendy, Web-hit thingy, you're relegated to sort of second-class celebrity status.

I think the original, 'They're the next Jane's Addiction' things that people said about us in the beginning have been pretty much wiped out.

I never wanted to leave the Smashing Pumpkins. That was never the plan.