New Jersey shaped who and what I am. Growing up in Jersey gave you all the advantages of New York, but you were in its shadow. Anyone who's come from here will tell you that same story.

Of course I'm going to say 'I'm a thug,' that's because I came from the gutter and I'm still here!

I knew Fred since I was 14 and was first going to the Old Town School, Fred used to work part-time in the store. Every time I wrote a song Fred would turn on his really good high-class tape recorder, reel-to-reel, and record it. So he's got recordings of me on guitar singing all my songs in his apartment long before I ever recorded for a recording company. I never found out what happened to the tapes.

The lesson I've learned the most often in life is that you're always going to know more in the future than you know now.

Life is a journey that's measured not in miles or years but in experiences, and the route your life takes is built not of roads but of songs.

I lived most of my life in Texas, but I've settled down in Pittsburgh. My husband is from here. We met at a Flyleaf show in Columbus.