My dad was a singer in a band and neither of my parents went to college, and I ended up getting into Harvard and was the first person in my family that went to college and it happened to be Harvard.
My mom and dad were actors when they were younger and had a horrible experience of it. My dad became a literary agent and my mom a casting director.
We'd just go to church and sing. My dad would get me and my sister Doris, and we would sing together. I sung the harmony, and my sister Doris took the lead.
My dad passed away before my freshman year, and it altered how I thought. I was depressed - I didn't hang out with my friends. I worked through it by dancing.
And my dad wanted me to play the trumpet because that's what he liked. His idol was Louis Armstrong. My dad thought my teeth came together in a way that was perfect for playing the trumpet.
I was born and brought up in Liverpool with my clever little sister Jemma, who is 14 and wants to be a vet. My mum Jane is an administrator and my dad Peter is a taxi driver.
My grandmother would sing in the choir, while my dad - while he was in college - sang and recorded with a quartet. So yeah, it was definitely my dad's Southern side that impacted on me musically.
My father's death, my move, and my frightening and difficult delivery created a tremendous amount of stress, pain, and sadness for me. I was practically devastated beyond recovery.
Sickness, insanity and death were the angels that surrounded my cradle and they have followed me throughout my life.
Disease, insanity, and death were the angels that attended my cradle, and since then have followed me throughout my life.
My experience of my father's death was that it was still taboo; nobody would meet me after my father died because they didn't know what to say.
In the course of my life, I have often had to eat my words, and I must confess that I have always found it a wholesome diet.
I think everything about my life is magical. I've struggled, and against most odds, I'm truly having the experience of living my dreams.
My dream life is just to go back to my job full-time. And be with my family. You know, regular dreams, common dreams that everyone has.
I miss my kids, and they miss me. It's very difficult, but I have to do it for my country and fulfill my dreams coming to the 2012 London Olympics.
But I, being poor, have only my dreams; I have spread my dreams under your feet; Tread softly because you tread on my dreams.
My earliest interest in game design came when I was in primary school, and my parents bought a Commodore 128 computer. I taught myself to write programs in BASIC, and then I made my own games.
I always say now that I'm in my blonde years. Because since the end of my marriage, all of my girlfriends have been blonde.
I've been an entrepreneur all my life, and my recent focus is on finding entrepreneurial solutions to address global challenges in healthcare and education.
The country experience was more of a departure. When you consider my education and my upbringing, you can see that was more of country rock outgrowth of my popular music aspirations.
I'm walking this walk, and my life has nothing to do with my perception of the world. It's all God! How do I function within His plan?
