It would be a horrible business, a horrible sort of culture if you didn't have the candy pop as well as the real hard-hitting stuff. And I love some pop music.

My generation in the UK, they're very apathetic, a lot of them.

It would be a horrible business, a horrible sort of culture if you didn't have the candy pop as well as the real hard-hitting stuff. And I love some pop music.

If you are a Steve Earle and you're up on a platform and there are people out there listening to you, say something to them. Tell them something valuable. Tell them something they need to know. It doesn't have to be dictatorial, it just has to be informative.

I'm already 30! It doesn't really feel like a landmark. When I started out, my aim was to keep making records. Just because I've reached the 10th doesn't mean I'm going to rest on my laurels now!

One of the joys of writing music is making your own mark. Study other stuff, immerse yourself in music and then tell your own truth.

I think that youth culture is now very deliberately designed by both corporate entities and by governments to not involve people directly. Because as soon as you involve people you have a small loss of control; and as soon as that happens, anything could happen.