My parents have always been very respectful of me so I’ve always been really respectful of them. My worst fear is to let them down so that’s why I don’t misbehave.

When I was 8 years old, it mattered what my favorite singer said and wore and expressed opinions about. And if I have a chance to matter to the growth and hopes and wishes of little girls, that's something I can't take lightly. So I do factor them in when I'm thinking about what to wear, and what to say, and whether or not to go out to bars even thought I'm not twenty-one.

I'm the kind of person who needs to feel like everything happens for a reason. When you date a guy and it goes badly, that's horrible. But if you can write a song about it, then it was worth it.

I think I feel in love with words before I feel in love with music.

I like to write about relationships. I like it when my friends come over and we crowd around the piano and sing Journey songs at the top of our lungs... And I like things that make me feel seven again. I don't ever look down on people for the way they choose to have fun; it's just not necessarily the way I like to have fun.

The most miraculous process is watching a song go from a tiny idea in the middle of the night to something that 55,000 people are singing back to you.

I don't think it's the most important thing in life to fit it. I think it's the most important thing in life to dance to the beat of your own drum and to look like you're having more fun than the people who look cool like they fit in.