There's also the tradition of voodoo, the Haitian magic arts, in New Orleans. And because New Orleans is below sea level, when they bury people in New Orleans, it's mostly above ground. So you have this idea that the spirits are more accessible and can access you more easily because they're not even buried.

Yeah, I spent my teen years in West Virginia, and when I was a kid, in Louisiana. I definitely have that exposure to two different sorts of rural: the South and Appalachia.

In the country, it feels like you don't have control over nature anymore - nature is in control of you.

Because I see my own boys growing, and I see other children growing and I just have such a connection.

When I wake up, I'll go through emails on my iPhone - the junk email. At that point, my brain isn't usually awake enough to handle anything more than that.

When you get into Louisiana, it really is like a different country in a lot of ways. The plants you see are a little different, like the weeping willows and the cypress trees that come up out of the bayou. And it's steamy hot.

I'm used to getting reviews. I try not to read much because you'll always focus on the bad ones and not remember the good ones, so it can be a negative thing for a performer.