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I'm not a big fan of the thought that you can become a star by winning a contest. I'm sort of old-fashioned. I think people need to get out there and they need to work and they need to do their music because they love it. If they become successful, then great, and if they are not, whatever.

The people that go on 'American Idol' do want some recognition and fame.

When reality television really hit, I just had a backlash towards reality. It seemed like a cheap way to make a product. And then when music reality and 'Idol hit,' I just didn't watch it, it seemed novelty. And of course the story of 'Idol,' this is one of the greatest stories in television history.

I'm not striving for fame, that's for sure. I don't particularly like the idea of celebrity. I would like to be successful with my music, so I realise that there's a balance to be made there.

I turned down many chances to be on TV before 'Pop Idol' because I really wasn't interested in being famous. I didn't need it and didn't want it.

The music industry doesn't exist the way it used to. You'll never have another star like the stars of the '90s.

Music television is all about the media-oriented version of what it is to be a rock star; it's not about what Bob Dylan or Jimi Hendrix were about - which included great images, sure, but they had spiritual and political and revolutionary content, too.

If you're a singer, you do concerts, and you get that interaction with fans and see what cities in what part of the world come out to see you. When you're on television, you're removed from that.

I didn't get into making music for the fame aspect. There are people who do desire that.

Don't expect fame to come overnight. That filtered through to me in my own career. Look at Madonna: she's not the best singer in the world, but she's got where she has through hard work.