Terri Clark
CL: Do you put a lot of yourself into your music?
TC: Absolutely. There's a song on the album called “Gypsy Boots,” and that song is the story of my life. I am a bit of a gypsy, and this song kind of came out of that. It didn't sound like a big hit to me. But when we went into the studio and recorded it, everybody was thinking, It's a single.
CL: Earlier this year, you were going through a divorce and your mom was diagnosed with cancer. Was it hard putting together the album?
TC: I was able to escape to Nashville in between my mother's radiation treatments and focus on the music and take myself out of the reality of what was going on in life. Music has always been my escape. Since I was a teenager, if there was ever anything bothering me, I would sit on the edge of my bed with my guitar for hours; it was my therapy.
CL: How did you handle the diagnosis?
TC: My mom and I have always been a team, so it was scary. I was doing vocals on the album at the time, and my parents didn't tell me what the doctors were saying. (She had a rare cancer that invaded her pancreas, and at first they thought it was inoperable.) They were worried that I would go off the deep end. After more testing, they decided to operate and started her on chemo and radiation. I had bought a house up here in B.C., and my parents ended up getting a place about 10 minutes down the road. I'm really grateful that all that worked out and I was able to be here. I sat with her while they administered chemo…I tried to maintain my sense of humour through my mother's ordeal -- I was calling her Kojak and Baldy. I didn't want to get stuck and wallow in the misery.
CL: Are you a spiritual person?
TC: Yes. I try to live my life in a way that I know is true and honest, and not hurt people. I do think what goes around comes around, so you better do it right.
CL: What does “grrrl power” mean to you?
TC: It means owning who you are and being comfortable in your own skin. As women, there's so much placed on us by society: to be a certain size, look a certain way and behave a certain way. I pretty much break all those rules. I'm loud, I'm crass, and I say what's on my mind. But that's OK because grrrl power is [about] accepting me with all of my imperfections.
CL: What's next for you?
TC: I am going to win CMA (Country Music Association) Female Vocalist of the Year if it kills me. I'm not going away, and they're not getting rid of me until I get the award on my mantel.
CL: What will you be doing in 10 years?
TC: I will always make records, and maybe they won't get radio airplay, but they'll be albums that I really want to do that my fans will love.
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Photo courtesy of www.terriclark.com.
