Chrissie Hynde's memoir Reckless: My Life as a Pretender is coming out in paperback. In preparation for its release, Hynde sat down for an interview with People. Here's what she had to say:
How has the entertainment landscape changed over the years since you started out?
"None of the stuff I loved growing up was mainstream. You had to find it for yourself, and that turned you on. You would walk down the street and see someone carrying an album you liked. ... It was a fun thing. Now everything's mainstream, and everything has to be big, and everyone has to be the biggest. It's just not cool anymore. Nothing's cool.
Frankly, after all the reality television and after all the talent shows for people who aren't very talented, judged by people who have no taste ... For all this stuff that you see, none of it – for an 18-year-old kid – could be better than picking up a guitar, getting on the drum kit, and just bashing it out with your mates. It doesn't matter how much money you made or if you got famous. There is nothing better."
So you're not a fan of the Kardashians?
"I don't know. I would know who they were if I saw a picture, probably. But I don't know, beyond that, what their thing is. But I guess not. I don't have an opinion. "
Reality TV has kind of taken over in the last 10 years.
"It's part of the machine. It's just a system. It pays people. They have jobs. It's soulless. It's a temporary, fast turnover of stuff. Artists, someone who's sat on the edge of their bed for three years trying to learn the guitar, learn their craft – they really want to develop it and get good at it and do it all their life; they don't want to be a flash in the pan and make a lot of money. And I think it will win out in the end."
Who do you like these days?
"There's a rap artist called Lil Ugly Mane, and I found him when I was looking up a word, "lugubrious," on the dictionary on my phone, and it took me to a song. And I just listened to him – everything he does I love. He's very, very underground. I don't really use the internet beyond someone sending me a clip of something I might like – and there might be five related things. It's a whole world in there, which everyone benefits from. And like any other tool, you can use it for good or bad purposes."
Despite how you might feel about it, you really did influence mainstream culture. Madonna called you one of her biggest influences.
"She says that! She probably thinks it sounds cool."
How do you really feel about Madonna?
"I'm the queen of the mall look. I don't know if that means I influenced the culture or the culture influenced me more."
Read the full interview at People.
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