Pop Singers

"I had to perform in Béziers, In France, in a huge arena where they normally hold bullfights. There where a bunch of important people there, I was not that famous yet, so alot was riding on this performance, but the vibe was amazing. So a few songs into the set I yelled very enthusiastically ‘J’adore Béziers” Unfortunatly my French speech is not perfect so it sounded as J'adore baiser! The public did not respond, so I thought, with the wind they probably did not understand it clearly, so alot louder I yelled J'ADORE BAISER!!!! And then a deadly silence. Afterwords someone asked me, ‘doe joe know vot you ave just told all of France?’ Sure, I told’em I love’em….euh not really...man I was dying! But the boss from the French record label said, don’t worry about it, they thought u where amazing, we will sell alot of records here."

"All I can say is we are not promised tomorrow, I know that, you know that. So we gonna make every moment last and just blessed it and appreciate it. (form her speech at Rock in Rio, 2006)"

"When I'm asked where I want to be in five or 10 years time, I say I just want to be alive and healthy."

"I was walking tru Amsterdam when I heared I’m Outta Love blasting out of an open window. In that moment I rang their doorbell and when those people opened the door I said ‘Roomservice!’ Never I saw people dropping their jaws that much (laughs) I saw their eyes goin from me to their tv that had mtv on, back to me and back to the tv again, you saw they where thinking, how can this woman be in both places in the same time? But once they got over that shock they did not wanna let me go anymore, ‘come in, there is plenty to drink, there is plenty of everything (winks), what do you wanna eat, are u staying over…?’ Sweet people, real cute, only later I realized, oh my god, what if they were just making love to my music, they would have opend the door naked!"

"I don't have a deep desire to know my father. My brother and sister and I got forgotten about by him, and we haven't spoken to him in a ridiculous amount of years. He never contacted us after he and my mother broke up. [...] I never felt rejected as a kid. We had a fulfilling life with my mum. She was so strong."

"I don't fear death. But I don't like being dangled out there like a piece of meat on a fishing rod to it either. If I'm going to die, take me out now. Don't let me suffer. That's not exactly the way I wanted to go. I don't want to be in limbo, I don't want to know that I might die. The mights don't work with me. I'm too literal."

"I'm a singer who touches millions of people and my words and my knowledge of what I'm learning from cancer can help millions. And if I can help millions, even if I help one person, that's one person more than none."

"My will, my faith and my body have been challenged, but make no mistake, my heart is strong and my resolve to fight will never be broken."

"You don't have to be blond or blue eyes or taller or smaller...just have to be who you need to be, and that's help people become who they are."

"I'm not that deep, I'm not that mysterious. Don't try to figure me out. I'm a very open book. What you see is what you get."

"I'm a fighter by nature and nothing will ever change that."

"At the end of the day I'm maybe clean of cancer right now, but that doesn't mean it won't come back at 100%. So I'm not leaving here going: "Oh my God my life is over, cuz I don't know..." I'm sitting here, I'm happy I'm at Rove, I'm happy I'm in Australia, I'm pleased I finished an album, I'm just grateful. If it comes back I will kick it in the butt as much as I could. But it's not about winning, it's just about fighting, and that's all you got to on this earth. It's just fight for what your right is, and that's to live. (from an interview at The Rove Live, Australia, 2004)"

"I wear glasses because I need them; I don't wear them to be the fashion victim, I have to have them because I have a stigma in one eye and I'm blind in another. But I make it fun, I make it acceptable to fit in society; I've always worn crazy, goofy glasses, it's just what I do. This is who I am. Love me or leave me."

"Early detection has saved my life twice. I will continue to battle and lend my voice in any way I can."

"Show me some hope Show me some light Cause I got nothing left in me tonight If I don’t go If I say no Is it the end?"

"If there's no redemption I'll see you in hell."

"I've always tried not to take it too seriously — if you do, you dry up creatively, you turn into a product and it stymies you."

"Believe in yourself as ever, and your own tastes and ideas, and stay true to them, or you'll fuck your head up and end up hating what you do."

"Music bypasses the intellect, it makes you laugh, makes you cry, makes you want to dance, makes you want to have sex."

"You'd better hope and pray That you make it safe back to your own world You'd better hope and pray That you'll wake one day in your own world Because when you sleep at night They don't hear your cries in your own world Only time will tell If you can break the spell back in your own world."

"It's time that glamour came back, everything has got a little bit beige in the last two years, I say bring back black!"

"We were written off from day one. Nobody believed in us but us. We kept having hits despite the record company, despite the press."

"If this world is wearing thin And you're thinking of escape I'll go anywhere with you Just wrap me up in chains But if you try to go alone Don't think I'll understand (Stay) Stay with me"

"I carry on in my own narrow little tunnel and we have very different experiences of life even though we live together."

"I love digging out old records … Fashion goes round in circles."

"I have this massive love for the whole culture of pop music … It has probably been the biggest relationship in my life. It's my fascination, my on-going passion. … I really, really love music. I'm affected by it and uplifted by it, and made to laugh and cry, and almost fall in love with the person who has made me feel so brilliant and communicated so profoundly to me."

"If I was a furniture mover, I’d probably volunteer to put out the chairs at church on Sunday. If I was a barista, I’d probably volunteer to make coffees in the church foyer on Sunday. Music is what I have in my hand, so it’s how I can serve."

"In my opinion, a good guitar is the guitar that brings the best out of you as a player and helps you articulate your musical voice in its highest and most authentic form."

"Darlene Zschech. Eighteen years ago she saw something in me I didn’t see in myself. She called me out and up and on — as she has for so many others — and continues to do so. A true mother in every sense."

"A believer’s theology is being shaped by the worship songs they’re singing in church or listening to through the week, as much as the sermons they’re hearing on Sundays. And what we believe about God completely dictates the way we see Him, ourselves, others, and indeed our very lives."

"Community is one of the ways that God is still rubbing off some of my sharp edges and some of my spiky bits. The things that come with community that can be really uncomfortable are actually one of the ways the Lord uses to form us more into his likeness."

"Now that I have seen I am responsible, faith without deeds is dead."

"Whatever you feed yourself, is what's going to come out. You could say life is like that, Scripture is the answer to that. I love to read, I love the Bible, I have a bad back because of it."

"Songs are not only like poo, but songs are almost like the ground that's fertilized by the manure of life."

"When it comes to worship, I think that one of the special things about Hillsong Church is that every single one of our songwriters are people who are either serving in the church, volunteers or staff [but] none of us are on staff to write. We're in the business of building the church, Meaning where there's life, there's mess. That's the reality of humanity, I think that all of that manure, in all of its stench and warmth is a fertilizer for songs."

"One of the things about being a follower of Jesus is that though our calling doesn't change - the Great Commission - our assignments that are attached to that calling do change. So for that reason I really don't feel comfortable with any kind of titles because I'm really just doing whatever the Lord has me do in whatever particular season that is and that changes. I wrote a song about this a few years ago called 'New Wine', about not becoming so attached to the wineskins or not so attached to the ways that we assume God wants to use us, that we become so attached to that that we can't hold maybe the next thing that God wants to take us into."

"I’ve also been on a pretty strict plant-based diet for 4 months now – feeling stronger, fitter, healthier and more productive. I ride longer distances on my bike, can do more pull-ups than ever, and my brain seems to have a larger capacity for new projects, problem solving, songwriting, and fielding random questions. My health and strength make me a better performer and all that combined gives me more confidence to go out in the world and shine my light. It also makes me a lot better in bed. … For those curious or concerned about a plant-based diet, check out the film Forks Over Knives. It’s a life changer. You can get all the protein you need from greens, quinoa, and hemp seed."

"[Writing songs] is no different than explaining to somebody what you dreamed last night: No one ever gives you crap for what you dreamed last night. "I was laying in my bed, and all of a sudden a stallion jumped on my bed and the next thing I know I was in Mars but it looked like my kitchen" . . . That's kind of what I do with my songs, write them in a dream-like manner. It's up to people to swallow it however they want."

"They come to have a party for themselves, and we're kind of a house band for their party."

"when there's no, no storm Then how can I feel the calm ? If theres nothing, nothing, nothing left to lose Then what is this feeling That keeps on bringing me back to you?"

"The truth hurts and lie's worse."

"Oh well dreams can come true if you know inside you really want them to or you can sit you can wait you can leave your fate in someone elses hands."

"But if the rain must fall...It won't matter much to me If I had you And all I need is your love."

"I'm scared Of all this emotion for years I've been holding it down."

"I've got to take this chance and make it into something good."

"Im not lost, no no, just undiscovered."

"Oh it tears me up I try to hold on but it hurts too much I try to forgive, but it's not enough to make it all okay."

"Some people say that i'm not worth it I've made mistakes but nobody's perfect"

"And I know that it's a wonderful world, but I cant feel it right now."

"But if I had someone I would do anything and never never never never let you feel alone."