When I was 11 I went to New York with my mum, dad and sister. I felt like I was on a movie set the whole time and loved being over there on Independence Day.Collection: Dad
I have always said that it is completely about the music, and I have never been interested in anything else. I think I've been able to maintain that. I'm a totally normal person, I don't get followed or have photographers waiting outside my door. So yes I have a very ordinary life.
I hate getting my photograph taken; just because I'm a musician doesn't mean I should have to sell my soul and have pictures of myself on stage with a red face and sweaty armpits plastered over 'Heat!' every week. I'm not a model.
Singing Flower of Scotland was the only thing that made me nervous.I don't get nervous doing my own shows.
I loved Jake Gyllenhaal. He's the most beautiful thing ever.
I just go out and sing my songs. I don't put on elaborate stage shows with ridiculous fancy dress.
My band and I sometimes can't believe where we are in the world and what we're doing. But I'm very privileged to be in this position.
If you put lots of auto-tune on your voice on the album, people are going to be disappointed when they come to see you live. The imperfections make it better, more natural.
I've seen other people getting into trouble for glamorising breaking the law.
It's one of these baffling things about the world we live in that there is still homelessness, and it's good that there are charities like Social Bite that go all out to help and make a difference.
One of the problems trying to play an instrument outside in the cold is your fingers give up on you and you can't wear gloves, even fingerless.
On my first album some of the songs were written when I was 14 or 15 so your life experience means you change, but my style is similar.
My aim is always catchy songs, or songs with meaning and I want to write music people can relate to, about things anyone could go through, just real, honest music... songs that mean something, songs that are inspired by true life events.
You just have to have a song that you're desperate to play along to, and for me it was 'Turn' by the Scottish band Travis. I went to see them headline the Scottish T in the Park Festival, so after that festival, I went home and taught myself all of the Travis back catalog with an old guitar and a little chord book.
I've been on loads of promotional trips in so many other countries, and most of the time, you just want to go home.
But I absolutely love New York. Every time I go there, I still get excited. When you come over the bridge and you're coming towards Manhattan, I still get goose bumps every time.
When I wrote the first album I had never played live before, and I'd never been on tour. So that was really just me and my guitar.
I prefer playing with a band. It's good to do both, but for me it's quite exciting when I hear my songs completely transformed with the band behind me. You can really get into it more, and so can the audience.
It's hard for me to always explain my songs, and people always expect a meaning and to know what it's about. Sometimes when I write these songs I'm feeling a particular emotion, so to then come back and explain what I was feeling or put it into words is quite difficult.
I love going out and touring, and maybe people understand that it's not about making a quick buck. Maybe that translates.
We have this obsession with celebrity, where people can go on shows and makes millions of pounds from being completely talentless - Jade Goody, all that type of people - and it really gets to me. I'm not interested, I'm a musician. It's not about being famous and being a celeb.
I wouldn't have wasted a lot of time pursuing music. I was very lucky that my first demos got accepted.
I write simple songs, and people like that. They're mature enough to appeal to people who aren't teenage girls. Most of my fans are older, and it's nice to think the songs can appeal to middle-aged men and women.
I think I must be one of the only people who hasn't done the whole let's-crack-America thing.
As a very patriotic and passionate Scot, singing the anthem at a big football match means the world to me and I'm so lucky and so honoured that I get asked to do this.
If I'm out shopping, in Topshop or wherever, I'm never spotted. In fact, I'm usually asked if I have a student card. No-one seems to notice me, they're oblivious to who I am even in Scotland, and I'm very happy to be able to blend in with the crowd.
Hearing the statistic that one in four children in Scotland suffer from poverty just made me think that if there is even a tiny thing I could do that would help then it was totally worthwhile.
I'm quite well-rehearsed in having mental days; being awake at the crack of dawn and still having to be awake late at night.
I'm inspired by everything that goes on around me; my friends; my family; my own feelings; or even things that are happening in the world.
I've played in practically every city in Scotland, and loads of towns as well. I just feel very grateful that I'm able to do that.
I didn't have many celebrity crushes, it was mainly Rangers players! I had a thing for Giovanni Van Bronckhorst. Looking back, I really don't know why! Great player though!
My sister and I both used to wear matching clothes and now my mum, sister and I have the same bag which we all use even when together. Which probably doesn't look that cool.
I've never been told to do anything. I've never been hurried along by anybody - the kind of so-called 'pressure' of record labels doesn't really exist in my case.
No, I'm never confident with what I do, particularly playing and singing!
I'm confident when I perform but going into a horrible, boring studio and playing the same thing over and over again is really different to being on stage!
I've always bought CDs and even when I was young and at primary school I had a massive collection of CDs. I just like the excitement of opening it, reading the book, learning all the words and things like that. Hopefully I'll always be like that.
I have always been a fan of the Guillemots. Fyfe Dangerfield, the lead singer, has recently produced a debut solo album called 'Fly Yellow Moon'; he has the most amazing voice ever.
My boyfriend has always been a collector of art. He once rang up Paul Kenton and asked him to paint a New York skyline for me. He did, and it is the first painting that has ever been painted just for me.
We watch a load of films on the tour bus. We all watched Michael Jackson's 'This Is It', which was really amazing and it is a shame we will never get to see him perform live again.
I arrived in London and I was terrified. I never wanted to be a celebrity - one minute I was in school and the next I was in London talking to people at a record company. If anything, I didn't feel in any way worthy.
I could tell when I first started having sessions with stylists that my size was an issue. No one outright told me to lose weight but I knew it was a problem. I started to lose weight when I began touring.
I wanted music to be a career. To base everything on fame to me seemed a dangerous thing - I wanted my foundations to be about improving as a performer and writer. No one could push me into going down that route of being a celebrity singer.
If you are anxious, if you doubt yourself, if you stress over everything, it ultimately means you really care about what you do.
I come from Glasgow and being from Glasgow everyone knows about Celtic and Rangers. It is a big part of most people's lives.
I support Rangers and every time an Old Firm match comes up people will talk about it and look forward to it.
My favourite football memory is the opening match of France '98, and unfortunately Scotland had drawn Brazil.
There are some amazing women's football teams out there and it is good that they are being recognised. I was always terrible at football, so I am a little bit envious of their amazing skills.
I remember my mum playing 'Dancing In The Dark' and I thought it was cool.
My dad documented my whole life on video and there are so many recordings of my sister and I dancing and singing along to Michael Jackson's music.
I love 'Top Gear'. It's my favorite show.