The audience has always been my best director.
I just continue to do my work with dedication. Really, it's my listeners who have given me 40 years of bhushana. However, my ultimate probably would be to sing in front of god. That will be something.
I think I owe thanks to the people who have listened to me over the years, who tuned in on the radio. They have given me a warmth and loyalty that I've never been able to repay. The way they have reached out to me has certainly been the highlight of my life.
No story lives unless someone wants to listen. So thank you, all of you.
The best pay off in the world is when someone comes up to you and says, 'your music has helped me with some pretty rough times through life. I don't know if I would still be here if it was for your music whether it be country music or heavy metal has done for me.' That's ultimately the biggest payoff for me. I hear it from young kids to military guys and military women to older folks.
I feel honoured and blessed for all the support from listeners worldwide who have supported my music.
I think the most important thing is that I'm making music that the people enjoy. So the fans, the people that are out there listening to music and consuming music, I want them to enjoy it and love it. And so that's more important to me than Grammys.
All of us love applause, and so we should - it means that the listener likes us!
The idea that I could write songs that people wanted to hear came from other people who said they liked what I did.
