Quotes

I've found out how overwhelming the media is and the way it drills things into your head, it's almost like a mind control. If I could control prople's minds, I'd like to put something useful in.

I don't want to live in a culture of despair. I'd like to live in a culture of hope.

People always tell me that my live shows differ greatly from my albums, which are a little more meticulous and subdued. People come see me live, and I'm cracking jokes and dancing around like a savage, and it's truly unpredictable. There should be a record of that.

A lot of things are personal experiences disguised as other people's experiences. I can't remove the autobiographical slant from the things I write. You always bring yourself into what you're writing.

Britain was the first place I ever travelled outside the United States so when I arrived in London at the age of 19, everything was exciting - the sense of history and all these cute guys with British accents.

One of the things I'm trying to do as an artist is comfort people. Tell them, 'You're not alone.'

Sometimes I've lamented that, because I've written songs that were angry but I could never sound as angry as I felt. But at other times I feel really happy that I have this voice, because it seems to soothe people and draw them close to me. Children really love my voice. I've been noticing a lot of really young kids at the show - like, 12 and under - lately, and I'm really excited. Because if I were 12 years old, going to a concert, it would be a choice between either the Backstreet Boys or me. I'm just glad it's me.

The '60s aesthetic has never really appealed to me, the tie-dyed Deadhead running barefoot through the forest on LSD. I don't think that's really me. But I've been a vegetarian for 17 years and I consider myself an environmentalist inasmuch as I can be, considering the job that I have. I prefer living in the countryside rather than the city; I find it more sane and sustaining for myself. - Interview - October 24, 1995

It's very odd to think of the places my music can go once it leaves my hands.

I think of myself as a musician and not a celebrity. Celebrity status is something you have to deliberately pursue - I couldn't imagine myself seeking that. (Interview with The Providence Journal-Bulletin - February 13, 1996.)