I see love, like art, as an obsession. Maybe that's an overly romantic view of human existence, but I'm an overly romantic human being. If love, like rock and roll, doesn't consume me 24-7, it's not love. It can be respect, appreciation, admiration, wonderment, it can be a world of glory and a lifetime of peace, but I can't call it love. Love burns me and confuses me. Love's a light that can't be extinguished.

When people ask me if I have a hobby, a lot of times my answer is that I like to surf in warm water. I like to ski, if I have the opportunity. But really, I like to go to my studio and write music that I want to write, where there's no pressure to come up with a hit single.

But at this phase of my life, I want to write and not have to think about whether a song is going to be a hit. I want to explore the music that inspires me, and I don't want to ape myself.

Writing the songs and producing the songs and arranging them and recording them is your canvas and your palette and your brush.

When I'm not completely loaded, it's a much more vulnerable place. I can feel the music, I can feel the energy and I really have to put it out there. When I was loaded, I was just oblivious.

I sang in choir as a kid.

Rock and roll doesn't allow you to grow up - especially if you're not trying very hard to.