I think that we have a unique opportunity as performers and artists to be kind of the town criers and also to get more people to listen, so that's a blessing and a responsibility that I take very seriously.

I think people must wonder how a white girl like me became a blues guitarist. The truth is, I never intended to do this for a living.

I learned a lot about what it was like to have to use different hotels and not use the bathrooms, which made me more determined to be an activist.

Leading a band and producing yourself and picking cool tunes and putting a show together takes a lot of thought, and a certain amount of courage. In my early twenties, if I wasn't getting good enough at it, then people would not come and see me. Anybody who has lasted this long - I hope we get better with age.

One of the biggest obstacles I've overcome in my life was thinking I didn't deserve to be successful. Artistically I'm not as much of a heavyweight as someone like Paul Simon or Joni Mitchell, because I'm not a creator of original music, and I worried about that for years.

I've watched my peers get better with age and hoped that would happen with me.

I'm not that beautiful, and I don't want to be a pop star.