ALICE MERTON

I'm not going to release something just because they think it's the next hit. It's not what everyone wants to hear, but that's the way it is.

I wanted to take the seriousness out of everything a little bit, because it kind of fits my style.

I don't think I ever had a certain image of what touring was like... I think when you're young, you think it's very glamourous, but it's not.

Mom+Pop aren't just a label, but they were the group of people that seemed to really care about a long-term relationship. I can be honest with them, like I would with my family, but at the same time, I can expect for them always to be upfront and honest with me.

I loved a lot of the romantic composers.

I'm definitely sleep deprived - it is so hard to sleep on a tour bus! It moves around so much, and we have really weird time schedules.

The idea - or, if you like, the need - to write and record 'Lash Out' was born of a feeling within me.

Being an artist and a human in this world always means confronting people who make you feel like you have to act according to their rules.

I can do whatever I want, and I'm not going to let anyone tell me what language I should speak in.

Every time someone asks me where I'm from, I'm not sure how to answer that question... so I say I have no roots.

I'm putting out music that I love, and they're basically just stories of my life and how I try and teach myself to think about things. They're kind of like notes to self, basically.

I had no idea if 'No Roots' was going to work or not.

I don't like being dependent on other people.

I feel it's much easier to be honest or be myself in songs when I'm playing. That's why I felt, 'You know, I'm going to write the truth.'

I get really nervous when I'm performing or meeting new people.

A lot of labels always feel the need to tell you how they think the music should be marketed and what songs work best where. I say make music you love doing, come up with a strategy, and put it out there.

My mom used to bake so much when I was a child, and I have a big sweet tooth.

I didn't want to write a sad song to remind me of the fact that I'm always moving around. I wanted something to cheer me up.

Baking is more like chemistry, following certain instructions and knowing what comes out in the end. It's almost reassuring! Songwriting is a creative process where you go into a session with nothing and can come out of it with something incredible in the end. I never feel like I'm taking a risk with baking, but always with songwriting.

The actual thought of not really having a home was, for me, very depressing, and it was something that I was dealing with for quite some time.

You don't really learn how to write songs; you learn to develop as a writer, and you get to meet lots of musicians and figure out what kind of sound you want. You have the time to just develop and try different styles, and that's what I did.

Like most people, I wanted and still want to live by my own rules.

I started quite late. I only discovered that I could write a song when I was, like, 17... some musicians, they're starting out, writing songs when they're, like, 12, 13. I never thought I would go into songwriting when I was that young.

I have complete creative freedom. If I want to put a song on the album, there's no one stopping me.

I wanted to write an upbeat song where I could feel good about the fact that I've moved around so much and not sad about all the goodbyes I've had to face.