Quotes from Chrissie Hynde

I'm mindful not to get too self-pitying or too revealing of my own pain.

If you're an artist, you need to work. It doesn't matter how old you are, who you are. It doesn't matter if you're 12: if you draw, you draw. If you're 85 and you paint, you paint.

I don't think it's good to be sentimental, so I try not to be.

A ballad once in a while doesn't go amiss.

I have no sense of patriotism, but I do have a sense of community.

I'm not a figurehead for anything. I was a single mom with two kids. What else was I going to do? It was either be in a band or be a waitress.

I never want to bore the public.

I can't force myself to do anything I don't wanna do, really. I never have.

When I hear myself singing, I hear Iggy Pop and Jimi Hendrix. There's a conversational thing going on. I suppose it depends on which The Pretenders song you're listening to.

There are no real men.

When I was 16, the pot weeded out the men from the boys, there were the heads and the straights. Now it's almost like money can weed it out, you know?

I was a single mom with two kids. What else was I going to do? It was either be in a band or be a waitress.

Let's get rid of all the economic (expletive) this country represents! Bring it on, I hope the Muslims win!

I hope there is an edge to what I do.

In this business, things go in waves, and I might make a record every three years. That's enough for me; that satisfies me. And it satisfies the so-called public, because they don't really need a record every year. They don't even want one.

My policy is to do the least amount to get by.

I'm nothing without a band. I always feel like I'm part of the road crew until I'm on stage.

I just want to be as regular, and get by with doing the least amount of publicity, but still look really cool, you know? And get a bit of respect.

In my experience lust only ever leads to misery. All that suspicion and jealousy and anguish it unleashes. I don't want those things in my life.

I bought a Stella McCartney jacket in Salt Lake City. It's nice. It looks like a pea coat. I love Stella's stuff, so wherever I go in the world, I will always go in and buy her stuff.

I am very grateful to punk because I was a girl, and I felt like if I got in a band, I'd be kind of a novelty act, but punk was all about non-discrimination. No one cared because it was punk, so, you know, anyone could do anything they wanted.

All these fifty-year-old guys wearing baseball caps and shorts and acting like children. It winds me up. Men don't have to take responsibility anymore. Most of the guys I know would punch me on the nose for saying this, but maybe we do have to bring back conscription.

As far as success goes, I've never really got too excited about losing or winning.

The only thing I've ever offered the public is some music. If they like the music, that's great. Turn on the radio. If they don't like it, switch it off.