I don't think I'm an instantaneous act the whole world will love in one second - but that's how I've felt about bands I love.

Electra Heart is the antithesis of everything I stand for. And the point of introducing her and building a concept around her is that she stands for the corrupt side of American ideology, and basically that's the corruption of yourself. My worst fear - that's anyone's worst fear - is to lose myself and become an empty person. And that happens a lot when you're very ambitious.

I'm not really part of that 'L.A. thing' or that celebrity culture. I'm more like someone who observes it, and I can't ever imagine being like that.

I want to provoke people with thoughts, not by taking my clothes off. It's time to move on from Stripperville.

I think celebrity culture and sexuality in pop music is really important, but I want there to be an alternative for people.

I turned off my Google alerts in 2009 as I learnt that following yourself on the Internet very quickly becomes unhealthy.

People are complex, and I think it's a huge element of what I do, because you have to balance out the fact that you talk about quite serious things with a sense of irony and tongue-in-cheek humor. That's my personality as well.