Growing up, we didn't have anything. My mum wasn't well, so I was in three care homes then foster homes before me and my little brother went back to her. I was passed from pillar to post.

I like listening to old soul music. I like Sam Cooke. When I was growing up, the first things I was listening to was Whitney Houston and Cher. They were really big inspirations for me.

I think this industry can be tough on everyone. You have to surround yourself with supportive people and know when to put your foot down and do what's best for you and your family. The first few years in the music industry can be a steep learning curve, and I've definitely developed a thicker skin!

I am lucky in that I love what I do, but it can still be hard to be away from the kids for long lengths of time. At the end of the day, all I want is to be with my kids, but it's worth it to create a future for my family.

As a child, I wanted only two things - to be left alone to read my library books, and to get away from my provincial hometown and go to London to be a writer. And I always knew that when I got there, I wanted to make loads of money.

There is plenty of blame to go around for the U.S. housing bubble, but not much of it belongs to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The two giant housing-finance institutions made many mistakes over the decades, some of them real whoppers, but causing house prices to soar and then crater during the past decade weren't among them.

I need to raise my kids. It takes a lot of time and a lot of energy to raise kids and make men of them these days. I don't want them to be lazy and just spend their father's money.

I know why they don't like me because they want the money I have.