You Oughta Know

12/11/1998 2:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Dave DiMartino

When Alanis Morissette burst onto the airwaves in mid-1995 with her explosive debut single, "You Oughta Know," few could have predicted that this Canadian singer would open the floodgates on a new era in alternative rock. As her groundbreaking album Jagged Little Pill carved out a two-year niche on the charts, selling more than 15 million units and sweeping up a number of Grammys, female singer-songwriters the world over began to earn the credibility they had been seeking for years. No longer could radio programmers turn away aspiring women rockers with the age-old excuse, "We've already added a female artist to our playlist." Alanis's long-awaited Pill follow-up, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, already seems to be repeating this success, starting with its chart-topping first single, "Thank U."

The following is a conversation Morissette had with LAUNCH executive editor Dave DiMartino about her incredible success and the effects that superstardom has wrought on her life.

LAUNCH:
I'm curious about the way you hooked up with Maverick Records. They were a pretty new label when you came along, and the release of Jagged Little Pill seems to help them establish a presence in the market as much as they helped you establish a career.

MORISSETTE:
Well, we were talking originally to about four or five different companies in the midst of writing the record, and then the record was essentially done, and that's when I met Maverick.

LAUNCH:
What made you decide to go with them? Was it because you wanted to work with Madonna?

MORISSETTE:
Madonna was very supportive. She understands--perhaps because she is an artist--how important it is for us to have our space and not have people breathing down our necks. She's great.

LAUNCH:
You wrote many of the songs on the album with Glen Ballard. How did you two get together?

MORISSETTE:
Glen Ballard is one of the best people I know on this earth. I was actually set up to write with him through MCA Publishing, because they thought we came from a similar stylistic past. When we met, we sort of cleaned the slate and started writing from a different place, more of a spiritual sort of place. Our analytical nature wanted to pick apart what was happening because it was pretty overwhelming, but we couldn't figure it out.

LAUNCH:
Are you overwhelmed by all the attention you've received?

MORISSETTE:
I think the reason why I'm not as overwhelmed as I could be, is because I don't really look the same in person when people meet me. I've wound up being able to continue to get my groceries without being bothered too much. I've been warned that that will change, but it hasn't.

LAUNCH:
You've made other albums that were not as successful as Jagged Little Pill. Could you have anticipated the response that Jagged Little Pill would generate? Did you ever worry about how the album would be received while you were recording?

MORISSETTE:
No, we were really insulated when we were writing [Pill]. I was so into it, spiritually and emotionally, that the last thing I was thinking of was how well it was going to be received, really. It's overwhelming and it's gratifying because I guess that my being introspective throughout all of this is compelling other people to be--and that's great for me.

LAUNCH:
How did you write most of the songs for Pill? Was there a lot of forethought given to them?

MORISSETTE:
I write songs basically based on inspiration and stream of consciousness. A lot of the songs on the record were written in 20 minutes--just really quick, very uncensored, and there's no premeditation on any of them. The music and the lyrics were written at the same time, just in the room. I just give myself up to it. Sometimes it comes flowing very quickly, other times it takes a little time, but it comes.

LAUNCH:
Do you ever wish you'd approached things differently, musically, in the past? Some critics have dismissed your past efforts as throwaway pop.

MORISSETTE:
I can't dismiss things that I've done in my past. They're a link in the chain, and if I took them out, I wouldn't be here right now. And I'm really happy being here right now. The main difference between what I'm doing now and what I did before, is that I'm less fearless now with what I write. And I was less secure as a person back then, so I wasn't as ready to be as unadulterated and forthright back then. It was more for the sake of entertainment back then, whereas now, it's more for communication.

LAUNCH:
Are most of the songs based on your own personal experiences? Is there a person who inspired "You Oughta Know?"

MORISSETTE:
All of the songs are personal and they're written about different people and that's all I'm going to say. I just feel that my being honest about it doesn't give me the right to drag other people through the mud with me.

LAUNCH:
There have been a lot of misconceptions about "You Oughta Know."

MORISSETTE:
Definitely, and understandably, as well. I think its overt anger is leading a lot of people to believe that I'm a very angry person. What they're confusing is that this song was written for the sake of revenge, as opposed to the sake of release, which is why it was written. It was just emotions I had repressed in my subconscious for a long time, as I think everybody does. I just gave myself the opportunity to let it out. That's why it was so overt.

LAUNCH:
What does your family, specifically your parents, think of your work and your rise to fame?

MORISSETTE:
They're happy. My parents know me pretty well and they know that I repressed a lot of emotion for a very long time. So for them to have received [Pill] with everything being very unadulterated and honest, it was very refreshing and they were very proud.

LAUNCH:
Have you ever had a really bad show?

MORISSETTE:
I don't have bad shows. Truly, there is no such thing as a good or bad show, every night is a different monster. The only thing that differs that can frustrate me is whether I can hear myself in the monitor or not. But I'm communicating what I wrote, so...

LAUNCH:
And the audience definitely responds!

MORISSETTE:
Yeah, I just wind up connecting with a lot of people who are very emotional, both men and women. Some women come up to me crying after shows. And some of them come up to me just rejoicing. It's really great to see, and not only that, but despite by performing in the settings we've been performing in, people are relatively close to the stage. I can see their facial expressions. A lot of times I feel that even though I'm the one onstage, and I'm the one singing to them, that it's not about me, it's about them. And that's the best part.

LAUNCH:
You've helped shed some light on the recent Canadian rock scene. What can you tell us about Canada? Does Canada rock?

MORISSETTE:
Does Canada rock? You tell me. There's some pretty rockin' Canadians.

LAUNCH:
What's the weirdest thing that's happened to you, so far?

MORISSETTE:
What's the weirdest thing that's happened to me? I haven't had very many weird things happen to me. I've met a lot of weird people and been in some sort of different circumstances. I just walk away from it saying, "There are all kinds." I meet at least five or 10 people a day. I've stayed in some interesting hotels. It's just a matter of trying to stay healthy on the road, for all of us. The guys and I are pretty intent on that.

LAUNCH:
Anything you're afraid of?

MORISSETTE:
Death. I'm afraid of death and that's probably about it. And I think at some point, I won't be. There's not too much that scares me.

LAUNCH:
So what are you listening to these days?

MORISSETTE:
I listen to Joni Mitchell and I listen to Jane's Addiction. I'm the kind of person that will listen to a CD once it's been released for three years. So I'm listening to everything that was released three years ago. Seal. People like that.

LAUNCH:
Is there anyone in particular that you really like, any idols?

MORISSETTE:
That I strive to be like? I just respect people that have longevity in their careers, so that they are in the industry by default, and their main priority is their music, and they're communicating through music and they're compelled to do it and they can't help it. And that's the way I feel. And I know I'll be doing it until I go to my grave, whether one person wants to hear it or 10 people want to hear it. I respect the people that can keep the core alive even though their environments change, and it truly does when you become immersed in this business.

LAUNCH:
Do you have any specific plans for the future--other than touring in support of Infatuation Junkie?

MORISSETTE:
I may be getting into a little acting. I don't know. I actually started out as an actress, you know, before I did this.

LAUNCH:
Are you into computers at all?

MORISSETTE:
To be quite honest, not at all. I'm the queen of being apprehensive about the technological evolution. I may be right or wrong in that, but I'm very much a bohemian. I basically don't read the newspaper, I sort of isolate myself. When the idea of doing LAUNCH came up, it was as much about curiosity as it was about wanting to communicate with people.