I think that you have to experience darkness to feel empathy. For all of my failings - and I have many - I do have a complete ability to emphasize with people. And that all goes down to being "other." When you're young you think otherness is a state only you possess. When you get older you realize, "Actually, there's so many of us." In that we find community.

Alison Moyet

Categorized in : Thinking People Empathy

I came from a small town and at school in one class there was me, a member from Depeche Mode and someone who went on to join The Cure. That was all in one class of 30 kids.

Alison Moyet

class kids school

When you have a creative mind it doesn't stop going.

Alison Moyet

creativity creative mind

It is interesting seeing young people these days and watching how unimportant music is in their lives compared with our generation.

Alison Moyet

our-generation people interesting

I think the world is a dead carcass and I think the purpose of human beings is as maggots.

Alison Moyet

purpose world thinking

With the exceptional talent that is Guy Sigsworth as producer and collaborator, we have recorded a collection of original songs that sees me moving away from a generic line up and back into the world of a programmer. Born of reconstructed improvisation I like to think of it as Prog-Pop, but I also like to think of big dogs as small horses. So don’t hang on to that thought long. Unless, of course, you think it astute of me in which case I am right

Alison Moyet

horse dog song

Yazoo is the name of an old blues label and also a town in America. I like it because it doesn't mean a thing, it has no immediate connotations. That's what I hate about so many names today - they're so obviously fashionable.

Alison Moyet

hate names mean

I wasn't good at being affable. You get beyond that and realise the attraction in any human being has more to do with what they give to someone rather than just being face candy.

Alison Moyet

just-being faces giving

Instead of thinking that's a nice tune, you start thinking is it the right pace, is it the right tempo? That is the death nell for artists.

Alison Moyet

nice artist thinking

Within three months I had gone from being this black sheep of the town to suddenly becoming a pop star.

Alison Moyet

black stars sheep

When you find yourself on stage singing and you are embarrassed about what you are singing in front of your peers, then you have to think about your priorities.

Alison Moyet

finding-yourself priorities thinking

I spend a lot of time on Twitter, and it's a very interesting place. People are so driven to aggression. To me it's a funny thing. I grew up in an aggressive family, so I'm not at all intimidated by being verbally abused. I have no fear with words.

Alison Moyet

no-fear people interesting

I've always been "other." I've always felt odd; I have always felt foreign in the environment I've been in. When you are young, that is a really uncomfortable thing to feel. As an older woman I really embrace it.

Alison Moyet

embrace environment odd

The press Yazoo were receiving were focused on the voice, This obviously was about trends.

Alison Moyet

receiving trends voice

When you make a lot of money for a record company, they don't want you to evolve. Growing older, you naturally do.

Alison Moyet

records growing want

I have never done any other job. I have sung in bands since I was 15. I left school completely unqualified. I have no other training.

Alison Moyet

training jobs school

I had been with the label since I was 21. The label wanted shiny pop but I didn't. I found a little independent and we've got all these great reviews in England and now it has gone gold.

Alison Moyet

independent gold littles

It wasn't like I felt I was on a wave. It was just so easy. It is only afterwards that I thought I really had a bit of good luck going on there with Yazoo.

Alison Moyet

wave good-luck easy

I was a single parent, and I was prohibited from working.

Alison Moyet

single-parent parenthood parent

The press gave me a voice too quickly, and that could have unsettled a man who had every right to feel he should be in control of the thing he had created.

Alison Moyet

voice should men

I threw away the whole of my working history, my photograph albums, diaries and stage clothes. Shoving big, ugly discs on walls is a bit like rubbing people's faces in it, saying 'I am considerably richer than you.' It is completely unnecessary.

Alison Moyet

i-am you history people