When we were kids growing up in Liverpool, all we ever wanted to be was Elvis Presley.

My mother made a brilliant impression upon my childhood life. She shone for me like the evening star.

I was born in a very poor family. I used to sell tea in a railway coach as a child. My mother used to wash utensils and do lowly housework in the houses of others to earn a livelihood. I have seen poverty very closely. I have lived in poverty. As a child, my entire childhood was steeped in poverty. For me, poverty - in a way - was the first inspiration in my life.

Growing up, I was inspired by The Beatles and Bob Dylan. Damian Rice was a huge influence for me musically.

My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.

I want to be like Gandhi and Martin Luther King and John Lennon but I want to STAY ALIVE.