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What I've learned by going out and playing smaller venues and being more in touch with people is getting feedback, just by virtue of being able to watch the crowd react and watch their faces instead of being blinded by 3,000 spotlights. I've realized that you can quickly get out of touch with your audience if you're not careful.

You have to be willing to deal with the ups and downs of the music, the ups and downs of the audience.

And at the same time, you are of course a performer, but it's very important that you understand that your role as a performer is to get the best performance from those wonderful colleagues that you have the chance to work with.

The shortest feedback loop I can think of is doing improvisation in front of an audience.

I have to remind myself constantly that people actually want to hear the music I've made; that's hard for me to digest. I think a live audience is the only tangible evidence you can have that your work is making an impact. It's really humbling.

The thing I fail to do is fully comprehend what's given back to me by the audience. You would think you would be a performer partly so you could feel all the appreciation or adulation, but I haven't quite managed that yet.

Your artistry is a muscle that needs to be exercised, so if all you are doing is auditioning, you'll never get the satisfaction of fulfilling the need to play the part.

There's nothing more fun than acting on stage with a live audience and that immediate feedback.

You know, when I put out records that may not work or connect with the audience, it's because I'm pushing myself as an artist creatively, because I'm just bored doing what everyone wants me to do.