“I used to do crazy things that people would bail me out of, and I’m just grateful that I survived. But the music got very lost; I didn’t know where I was going, and I didn’t really care. I was more into just having a good time, and I think it showed.”

I always respected that B.B. sees music in a very open, free way.

The blues are what I’ve turned to, what has given me inspiration and relief in all the trials of my life.

In my lowest moments, the only reason I didn’t commit suicide was that I knew I wouldn’t be able to drink any more if I was dead.

I think everybody has their own way of looking at their lives as some kind of pilgrimage. Some people will see their role as a pilgrim in terms of setting up a fine family, or establishing a business inheritance. Everyone’s got their own definition.

I mean, it didn’t matter to me that there were people, it didn’t matter that I was shy Just the sound was so captivating that it helped me to get rid of those inhibitions.

I mean, the sound of an amplified guitar in a room full of people was so hypnotic and addictive to me, that I could cross any kind of border to get on there.

Music survives everything, and like God, it is always present. It needs no help, and suffers no hindrance.

Our love will rule in this kingdom we have made.

I tried when I was 13, when my grandparents gave me an acoustic guitar, and I tried for a year. It hurt so much to play. I mean, the fingertips hurt so much, I gave up.

I feel a real need to observe a level of propriety in what I’m handing out. Instead of me just venting or spilling my guts, I’ve got to consider how it’s going to affect people. How it’s going to affect me, as well. Because it’s like a cycle.

When you’re onstage with an electric band going through a massive P.A. system, it’s very artificial. You can’t really hear your own voice as it comes out of your mouth.

I know there will be no more tears in heaven.

There’s a desire in me to express something – to match what I hear in my head.

But the guitar, when you think about it, is the most versatile, really. I mean you can pick it up and take it with you wherever you go.

And I don’t like having my picture taken. I’m almost like an old African in that sense. I think it steals a bit of the soul.

I couldn’t believe how good Jimi Hendrix was It was a really difficult thing for me to deal with, but I just had to surrender and say, ‘This is fantastic.’

You can’t be old and wise, if you were never young and crazy.

What will I be doing in twenty years’ time? I’ll be dead, darling! Are you crazy?

It was Kanye West who spoke, and then we met and recorded some songs. After, you know what it is: we all bump like crazy.

It’s a pretty crazy thing in which I tried to make songs, real songs, not the quick stuff like on tape. A dose of Kendrick Lamar, a dose of J. Cole, because it’s got to be an album that goes in the club.

No doubt exists that all women are crazy; it’s only a question of degree.

I like meeting all my fans and signing autographs, although it can all get a bit crazy. Yesterday, for example, a boy just came over and planted a big kiss on my face! I was like, Hello?

It’s crazy because ‘Icy Girl’ came when I was in a dark place, but I made it to motivate myself. It was kind of like my anthem for lifting up my spirits.

Sugar makes me feel crazy – like, makes my body hurt kind of a thing. I don’t really eat fruit because it has a lot of sugar. I try not to eat a lot of red meat, but every now and again, I feel like I need iron or something – something that I’m missing.