Top 80 Shirley Manson Quotes

No, I like being a role model because I know how much comfort my musical idols brought me.

I don’t find any kind of tension very productive, I find it destructive, actually.

I’m afraid of happy people. They’re chemically unbalanced.

A lot of people these days are not music lovers – they just want to be famous which is a very different thing to what I grew up believing in.

I feel the same way I did when I was in school. I’m having the same insecurities.

Starbucks is my main fix and it’s usually you people working in there – sometimes they’re actually shaking. It just makes me feel horrendous because I’ve been in that situation.

At the end of the day, though, the band members have to be strong. It’s down to the individuals in the unit. Listen to me, I’m talking like I’m in the army and this is my squadron.

Possibly because I grew up not feeling very confident about my own physical appearance, I developed internal devices so that I could integrate into society.

I am greedy, and most importantly, game for what’s next.

I know lots of people who’ve never been lucky enough to get to this stage in their life. And I’m not gonna hide it for anybody.

People in day-to-day life tend to skim the surface of things and be polite and careful, and that’s not the language I speak. I like talking about feelings, fears and memories, anguish and joy, and I find it in music.

Starbucks is my main fix and it’s usually you people working in there – sometimes they’re actually shaking. It just makes me feel horrendous because I’ve been in that situation.

That’s a difficult question, because to consider yourself a rebel is sort of ridiculous.

I have a temper on me that could hold back tides.

I couldn’t feel good about myself hanging out in Armani clothes when my girlfriend can’t even pay her heating bill. I’d feel foul and I’d be embarrassed.

I’m 45 years old. I used to be a club girl, but that’s not my world anymore. That doesn’t mean I can’t make music that excites. I think it’s inspiring to see an artist you grew up with take another crack.

I’m a loud person; I love noise and aggression. I crave contact.

In the ’90s, the radio was still alive with all different kinds of points of view, and I think that’s why people are longing for that time. It was the first time that alternative music broke through to the mainstream.

And then there’s all these other creeps that surround your band and suck off you like leeches and try to manipulate you and your business. You have to watch like a hawk. I’m always ready to fight. I see it very much as a battle.

I would say I’m pretty well at ease with my sexuality, but I’m an individual before I am a female.

I was a redhead and a middle child; both can make you feel excluded. It’s like fighting to be included, in the swim of things. After a while you start to develop a bit of a victim mentality, which isn’t great for a happy life.

I am laughably aggressive, and the rest of the band is very laid back, so we mix well.

It’s definitely an intrinsic part of my makeup that makes me want to see black when everyone else is seeing white.

I love pop music. Who doesn’t?

I plan on doing as much in my life as I possibly can.

Mozart was a punk, which people seem to forget. He was a naughty, naughty boy.

What makes a woman stylish is what she has to say and how she chooses to live her life.

I was a redhead and a middle child; both can make you feel excluded. It’s like fighting to be included, in the swim of things. After a while you start to develop a bit of a victim mentality, which isn’t great for a happy life.

In the ’90s, the radio was still alive with all different kinds of points of view, and I think that’s why people are longing for that time. It was the first time that alternative music broke through to the mainstream.

I want to hear an alternative viewpoint, and I don’t want girls to be defanged and declawed and pretty and mute.

The sensation of never feeling good enough or pretty enough will always be there. It’s a constant dialogue, and you just learn to be more powerful than that other voice. When you hear it come up, you shut it down.

I refuse to step inside the ring and fight like a gladiator against my own. I’m not playing that game. Any woman who has survived a year or more of making music has my undying respect.

I wanted to put out a solo record because I was stuck on a major label and sick of it.

You don’t really hear a female perspective on the radio, because so many of the songs are being written by men.

Until we command the exact same salary as every male counterpart, I feel a political desire to stand by other women. If we don’t stand together, that equality will never be fully realized, and that bothers me.

It’s unhealthy for people to never express any kind of negativity or doubt. To have balance, you need to address that side of your thoughts as well as the positive. Otherwise, you tend toward crazy.

I like the feeling that I’m giving young women self-confidence. It sounds so cliched, but it can be very moving.

No, I like being a role model because I know how much comfort my musical idols brought me.

I think it’s a great thing to have failed in life and then pulled yourself up by the boot straps and actually done something, because then you appreciate it more.

You don’t really hear a female perspective on the radio, because so many of the songs are being written by men.

The truth is, I’ve always been wracked with self-loathing and terrible, paralysing depression.

I just am fascinated by other female artists, probably because I feel a kinship with them, no matter who they are and what they do.

I mean, I tend to do my own thing, and that usually crosses purposes with everyone around me.

I’m fairly in control and I don’t like to flirt particularly. I mean, obviously if I meet someone who I think is hot, of course I’ll want to flirt with him, But in general I don’t use it in day-to-day life.

You have to watch all sides of your advancement, you have to make sure people’s bodies and minds are healthy and their morale is cool before you can really go out and play great music.

How you present yourself is nobody’s business but your own. The stylists have an opinion. The hair people have an opinion. The fans and the management have opinions. Ultimately, you have to trust that you are the safe-keeper of yourself.

A lot of celebrities just want money, fame, power, fancy cars, houses all over the world and have people bow down to them. To me, that’s frightful behaviour.

I think it’s a great thing to have failed in life and then pulled yourself up by the boot straps and actually done something, because then you appreciate it more.

Selling millions of albums is a sign you’ve infiltrated the culture.

I think women in pop have been declawed and defanged, and they’re just meant to look pretty and sing pretty.

I’ve got a lot of stamina and I enjoy people, so having lots of people around doesn’t freak me out.

I know lots of people who’ve never been lucky enough to get to this stage in their life. And I’m not gonna hide it for anybody.

I refuse to step inside the ring and fight like a gladiator against my own. I’m not playing that game. Any woman who has survived a year or more of making music has my undying respect.

And then there’s all these other creeps that surround your band and suck off you like leeches and try to manipulate you and your business. You have to watch like a hawk. I’m always ready to fight. I see it very much as a battle.

I just want to live my life a little freely and not adhere to any schedule – just make music and have fun.

The sensation of never feeling good enough or pretty enough will always be there. It’s a constant dialogue, and you just learn to be more powerful than that other voice. When you hear it come up, you shut it down.

I was always embarrassed because my dad wore a suit and my mother wore flat pumps and a cozy jumper while my friends’ parents were punks or hippies.

We’re living in a time when people are struggling to appear perfect.

I plan on doing as much in my life as I possibly can.

I couldn’t feel good about myself hanging out in Armani clothes when my girlfriend can’t even pay her heating bill. I’d feel foul and I’d be embarrassed.

I am greedy, and most importantly, game for what’s next.

I’ve got a lot of stamina and I enjoy people, so having lots of people around doesn’t freak me out.

A lot of people these days are not music lovers – they just want to be famous which is a very different thing to what I grew up believing in.

I just want to live my life a little freely and not adhere to any schedule – just make music and have fun.

Pop music seems to be the way radio programming has chosen to support female artists. They have chosen not to support a more provocative voice from women, which I find disappointing.

Humans all want to beat the clock but nobody ever does.

Selling millions of albums is a sign you’ve infiltrated the culture.

I am laughably aggressive, and the rest of the band is very laid back, so we mix well.

People don’t associate red hair, pale skin, and freckles with beauty.

I love pop music. Who doesn’t?

I have a lot of very close girlfriends and sisters – I’m from an all female family. My father often quips that even the cat was neutered!

It’s definitely an intrinsic part of my makeup that makes me want to see black when everyone else is seeing white.

I’m fairly in control and I don’t like to flirt particularly. I mean, obviously if I meet someone who I think is hot, of course I’ll want to flirt with him, But in general I don’t use it in day-to-day life.

I like the feeling that I’m giving young women self-confidence. It sounds so cliched, but it can be very moving.

I want to hear from the creature who isn’t blessed with unbelievable good looks and incredible genes. I want to hear from the geek girl, the forgotten girl, the invisible girl and the miserable girl.

I’ve got no timetable. I’m sort of sick of timetables, to be honest.

I am not a sexy woman, I’m not beautiful, I’m not a sex kitten, I don’t flirt with people, yet I’ve been tagged more of sex symbol than women who truly are and I that’s solely because I don’t reveal too much: people are curious.

In terms of fitting in, you know, I don’t have a lot of armor up. I’m a raw nerve and it’s really uncomfortable for a lot of people.

Humans all want to beat the clock but nobody ever does.

I would say I’m pretty well at ease with my sexuality, but I’m an individual before I am a female.