Despite having played Bangkok the day before, Jewel looked fresh. Perhaps she has already gotten used to being on the road, after all, this lass has been touring regularly since her debut release in 1995. Arriving in Singapore for her next show (April 12, 2002), Jewel graced MTVAsia.com's EILEEN KEH with her presence for a quick interview...

You started out playing in coffee shops and now you're playing huge venues, like the one this evening. Which do you prefer? The intimate coffee shop or a huge screaming crowd?

I like both, you know. I like playing small venues 'coz it's very intimate and you really can talk and see people. But it's also very flattering to have lots of people buy your tickets. The energy when you do a rock show for a large crowd, it's very fun.

I read that two songs on this album, "Love Me, Just Leave Me Alone" and "Cleveland" were written when you were 20, 21. So why the decision to put them on this record?

You have to wait till they're right. They won't really have fit on my other records and it was hard for me to sing more up-tempo songs in a studio, 'coz there was no audience. It took me a while to figure out how to sing live in a studio.

In another song on "This Way," "Do You Want To Play?", you said that there's a hidden Anais Nin reference in it, and in your first album, "Morning Song" there was also mention of her. Is she a role model of inspiration for you, or is there any special reason why she is included in your work?

Yeah, I think she's a really talented artist. It's not that I idolize how she lived her life, you know, I don't really have a desire to cheat on my husband or anything like that. But, I really admire her honesty as an artist, the fact that she had the integrity to be honest about what she was in her writing. I think that's heroic. I think when you try and make yourself look more perfect than you are, that's misusing art, abusing art.

I like people like (Charles) Bukowski and Anais Nin because they didn't hide who they were. They just were honest about it and I think when you read people like that it makes you feel less alone. You feel like there are other humans out there and you see other people struggling toward redemption or wholeness.

Why did you choose "Standing Still" to be the first single as opposed to maybe, "Jesus Loves You," which is one of your favorites on this album.

That's nice! (laughs) "Jesus Loves You" is a little controversial. I like that, it would have been my pick as a first song. But, you know I think it was sort of too much for a lot of the audiences. My label wasn't too uncomfortable. I like the lyrics in "Standing Still," I think it has a lot of integrity.

Your next single is "Break Me," have you shot the video for that yet? Or is there a concept you already have in mind?

"Break Me" is a love song, but I wanted the video not to be sort of a cliché, romantic video. I wanted it to be sort of, especially considering the world politics today, I wanted it to be about a sort of bigger love, learning to love, beyond religion, beyond stereotypes.

Next...