Now things have changed for the better. Our reforms end seniority and tenure so we can hire and fire based on merit and pay based on performance. That means we can put the best and the brightest in our classrooms - and we can keep them there.

Like many places across the country, Wisconsin lost more than 100,000 jobs from 2008 to 2010. Unemployment during that time topped out at over 9%.

Melodies are far more interesting. They are there, in your face, in certain sections of the songs. People do complain about the melody thing, but we do hit patches of melody and beauty, as well as the other stuff.

My kids were targeted on Facebook by protesters.

About 70 percent of everything is really sketched out on my keyboard beforehand, because I do want accidents to happen in the studio.

The people who are making you feel under attack is your union leadership, and they're doing it for politically intense reasons.

It's time to put our differences aside and find ways to work together to move Wisconsin forward.