I wasn't allowed to grow as an artist. My albums were nicer to look at than to listen to.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
The thing about being an artist today is you get to develop right in front of people's eyes before you even put out an album.
I didn't put out this album because I wanted everybody to know I was grown up. I'm 21 and that's not grown up.
I think I've grown a lot in the last few years, and I needed to express myself as an artist on this. It wasn't necessarily about going in and making an album chocked full of hit singles... there were a lot of things I did out of the joy and the want to do it.
I think as any artist you always want to grow; you always want to get better.
A lot of people considered my career as an artist largely over. Two albums got shelved. But I've made music since I was a little kid, and for the majority of that time, I wasn't paid for it. So I will always be making it.
It wasn't so much that I had to leave to make it in the music business as I was curious to be out on my own and sort of explore. I never felt that where I was ever influenced my songwriting.
If you had ever heard my album you would know that I could never consider the music business!
The first album was a very successful record. It made me very visible and it's an immediate association, but I don't do that anymore. Now I'm true to myself as an artist again. I'm more vocally oriented.
I hadn't been a recording artist all that long when albums came on the scene, and I was one of the first singers to point the way to how varied an album's contents could be.
I'm growing as an individual, but your always growing. All of my albums are snapshots of where I am artistically.