Quotes from Brittany Howard

I have a lot of respect for all the artists I get compared to, even if, as an artist, you prefer to have your own identity.

It'll help you be imaginative if you listen to classical music. It helps you understand dynamics and how important they are to create an environment.

An important part of being in a band is the rhythm section.

When I picture England, I picture little gardens and beautiful yards. I don't really like cities; I like to go and see things like that.

I wear a lot of black, and it's not because I'm depressed or anything. I like black jeans - they're pretty much the only colored jeans I wear. James Jeans have the most comfortable fabric. I'd say in general, I dress pretty comfortably.

My favorite guitar players are Chuck Berry and Brian May and Dave Davies from the Kinks.

For whatever reason, whenever I'm having a get-together, I'll turn on my projector and play YouTube videos of 'Russian driving fails.' Russians all have dashboard cameras in their cars, so there are all these videos of crazy wrecks and people almost getting hit in the street. It's a conversation starter, for sure.

Once, right before a show, I realized I'd forgotten shoes. I didn't want to wear my flip-flops onstage because I could trip. I ended up going barefoot, which actually worked out because it became my 'thing.'

Freddie Mercury inspired me when I was young.

I'm not really into EDM music; I really like when someone plays their instrument and stuff. But I saw Deadmau5 at a festival, and it was pretty tight, I have to admit. He's got the giant mouse head on and tubes coming out of the ceiling and giant mirror glass things.

The first time I learned how to play, my guitar was out of tune. I didn't know it; I just started writing songs.

I'm homesick all the time. I miss my animals. I miss my family. I miss my friends.

To me, if you're a musician, then you're interested in music, and if you're interested in music, then you should listen to a lot of different types.

I always felt out of place. I wasn't a cool kid, but I wasn't a nerd, either. I had trouble finding my place. But when I found the music, I had a place of my own.

Oh, man, I love the Staple Singers. I love Pop Staples' guitar playing, too. He's one of my favorite guitar players.

Onstage is the one time in my day that I can let it all out.

Every time I'm home, it's like a vacation, but I've been playing in bands since I was 11. I guess our goals were always small goals. It started off my goal was just to be in a band. Then it was to have a drummer that would show up.

We're from Athens, Alabama. That's my town. People think it's Muscle Shoals, but they have no idea. It's a quiet, sleepy little town, about 45 minutes from Muscle Shoals. It's really hard to be a band in Athens; there are no venues.

For my band's debut tour in 2011, we road-tripped across the country in a 15-passenger van. It was the first time I'd left Alabama. I drove through scenery I'd only ever seen in calendars: auburn leaves falling in Vermont, the sun setting over purple mountains in Arizona. It was incredible.