It's great for my daughter to see Beyonce and Taylor Swift, women that are in charge of their own careers, writing songs from their own perspective and taking people to task. That's very different from when I was growing up - it was all like, 'Stand by your man.'

Twenty years later, twenty years after I joined the women's movement, we're still talking about the same issues. We're still talking about reproductive rights for women, and we're still talking about getting equal pay for women. And that's just frustrating.

I feel really lucky. My fans are incredibly loyal. They encourage me to keep going. I feel more torn, trying to fulfill what my kids need. It's really huge. They're doing so well.

Aretha Franklin, she's just the most amazing singer ever. But I think there are so many singers that I just loved and sang along to on the radio. I guess I just enjoy trying out different styles along the way.

Shoot, I go to work. That's what we're built to do. I know it's work and it's play - but it's my job and I love doing it.

Every company that comes into the office for appropriations, the first thing I ask is how many jobs are you going to bring to the 5th District that are not already there.

I hope to have a long career, and I don't want to be defined by things that aren't the music.

I had just turned 28 and sold my first book, a travel guide for vegetarians, but I'd tell people about the day job that I didn't care about instead - I placed banner advertisements on the web for a search engine company.