Broken Bells reminds me how much fun I have making music.

Going back and forth between wanting to be respected artistically and wanting to move people is its own challenge.

Even with artists I love, only about a third of their music is what really hits the sweet spot for me.

I have ideas all of the time from the beginning, but they never really wind up turning out like I thought they would.

Some people have been listening to the Beatles their whole lives; I didn't discover them until I was 18 years old. As a result, I'm still very affected and moved by their music - maybe in a way that's different from someone who grew up around it.

If you're 22 years old and you can't believe you're even in the position to have a career making music, the first thing you're going to think is: Maintain. Don't lose it. And that's precisely what causes you to lose everything.

In the end, I think musicians know that getting up in the morning and making music you love doesn't necessarily mean that you deserve billions of dollars or worship from anybody.