Charli XCX

“Females should stand by each other, especially in an industry which seems to try so hard to pin us up against each other and make us fight. It's not about that for me. I refuse to be sucked into a twisted world of insecurity and lose who I am.”

“I don't think that I'm a pop star. On paper, I'm bad at being a pop star with the conventional idea people have.”

“When I was younger, I was quite scared of a red lip. But I started listening to '60s French ye-ye pop when I was making 'Sucker.' I was looking at Brigitte Bardot and those kinds of girls. When they were dressed up, it was often a bold red lip.”

“I had this dream to be a rapper when I was younger.”

“Just because I might be bored doesn't mean I have to look boring. I'd rather look fabulous, like I'm having a great time.”

“I wish I could rap! I wish I could rap like Azealia Banks or Lil Wayne or someone like that... Twista. He's super fast.”

“'90s fashion is awesome. Best of both worlds - you had power pop, like the Spice Girls and Shampoo. But then you had Nirvana and Hole. And you also had '90s dance music like N-Trance, who kind of blended both.”

“From the moment I stepped into this industry, I've always had to fight for my ideas and for my voice to be heard.”

“I really love Grimes, Niki & the Dove, stuff like that.”

“The fashion of the '90s is a massive inspiration to me. My favorite video of all time is 'Say You'll Be There' by the Spice Girls. That's the best styling ever. If I could dress like that every day, I would.”

“I used to worry about being cool. Now I realize that I genuinely don't care.”

“I do this weird thing in studios where I climb stuff when I get nervous.”

“To be honest, for me, my main workout is when I'm on stage. Even though I make pop music, I don't think I perform in the classic 'pop star' sort of way. I'm very active on stage; I always end up dripping in sweat afterwards. It's always like a full-on, wild performance, so that's pretty much like my exercise, I would say.”

“If I can sing along to it, it's pop music.”

“I think it's cool to be a rock star; I don't think there are many. There aren't many who speak out and take risks. And I think that's important.”