I needed a song and I need a place to kind of get it out. John Paul [White] was there for me as a friend, and I really appreciated that because I just needed a place to go.

I'm lucky to have friends who inspire me all the time. Watching other people teaches me and helps me to carve out my own sound. We're all just recycling on our influences. What you hear is the sound of those artists swirling around our insides and finding their way back out somehow.

Don't ever believe someone that tells you you're the next big thing. You're not. I'm not. Those people will come and go. As artists, we're all just trying to make a living doing what we love. No different from anyone else.

I'm not interested in the being the next indie hipster scene or in how skinny my jeans can be. That's not my thing. I'm interested in arenas. That was the magic of the music I grew up listening to. Being a rocknroll front man is all I've ever wanted since I was 10 years old. I give it everything I have.