facts & quotes

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NAME _ Natalie Jane Imbruglia
DATE OF BIRTH _ 04.02.75
PLACE OF BIRTH _ Berkley Vale, Australia
ZODIAC SIGN _ Aquarius
HEIGHT _ 162cm
FATHER _ Elliot Imbruglia, italian
MOTHER _ Maxene Anderson, australian
SISTERS_ Laura, Michelle, Carla
FIRST JOB _ Bubblegum TV commercial
RELATIONSHIP _ married to Daniel Johns (The Dissociatives)
PETS_ a dog called Charlie

QUOTES (1998)

* When I was a child growing up in this australian redneck beach town, it was only cool to have blonde hair and be a surfer chick. I could learn how to surf but I still looked italian. It took me a long time to realise that was a good thing.

* The first thing I did when I left 'Neighbours' was cut my hair short. I wasn't allowed to cut my hair for two years. But sometimes I felt uncomfortable about having my face so on display the whole time. I felt very exposed, I think of myself much more as a tomboy. I like girls who look like boys. I dress boyishly.

* I finished on 'Neighbours' three years ago and I didn't really know what I wanted to do next. I came to London, chilled out and just had a bit of fun. The I had the head space to sit down and think. I realised I could do whatever I wanted to do, so I started songwriting. I've always been a singer. I came to the conclusion I wanted to do it for myself, not because otjer people have done it. It just felt right.

* Because of the soap [Neighbours] thing I wasn't being pit up for the [acting] parts I wanted back home. I thought if I dissapeared it'd help me my acting career in Australia aswell.

* A lot of the album [Left Of The Middle] is about where I was mentally. And as much as you try and invent characters and other situations, subconsciously there is shit going on. You can't really escape that. But I remember when I wrote 'Big Mistake', I was really happy. I was in L.A., and I'd just gotten my deal and I was really content in my relationship. I was on a real high.

* It was a hard time [before getting a record deal] in a lot of ways. I was bitter, frustrated, just like any other kid going through a period of struggle and change. But the thing is that I chose to do that. It was a scary time in my life, but it paidoff in the end. You've got to take a risk and struggle a bit.

* I've always had this incredinly ambitious streak. I'm the type of a person that, no matter how much I try to chill out, it's like grrr. Even when my career was going down the toilet, there was no way I was going beaten. No way.

* I had success before and lost it, so this time around I'm much more grounded. It's really important to me that this time I don't change my life too much, that I don't let people push me into doing things I don't want to do.

* When I started making the album, I didn't know how I was going to do it, and found it hard to imagine getting credibility. But something drove me on.

* I'm very close to my music and I find it hard to put labels on it. I just think it's very me. I don't think I've come into my own yet, but I'm excited about where I'm going.

* I don't want to talk about David [Schwimmer]. He wasn't the one. He's a lovely guy, but it's over. I'm good friends with David now and you know, c'est la vie.

* Friendships with girlfriends are just so much more important than boys. Men come and go.

* On a personal level, on of the things I did right was getting myself together before I embarked on this. I had to make sure I was in a good state of mind. I changed a lot of things in my life and was really steadfast an what I wanted to do. I made my life more simple and realised who my real friends were.

* I find comfort in those kind of girlie sings. Ever since I was a kid I have liked emotional songs. Happy is harder to write. It's very hard to write a happy song with intensity and emotion. I'd like to be able to write happy, poppy songs, but I just can't. What comes out, comes out. And of course I'm aware that it's such a cliche, the angsty-girlie thing. But you have to go with the flow when you're songwritting and that's what came out.

* I love the Verve single. My favourtie sort of music isn't necessarily in the charts. My favourite artist is Shawn Colvin. I don't really prefer pop to indie, no - if it's good I love it.

* I have got a temper - it's a streak of russian.

* If the [record] label had tried to make me put on some hot paints and sing pop I just couldn't have done that. It's not me and my voice wouldn't suit that.

* [Record company] RCA's not seen me as a puppet on a string. They've been behind me 100% and encouraged me to grow as an artist. I've heaped the pressure on myself. I have to.

* I knocked the 'Spice Girls' off the number two position on Britain and that was fantastic! It was an incredible feeling because I had prepared myself to fail. I was more pessimistic about it than anyone else. Everbody else was in love with the record, but I was secretly scared ... I had this fear of rejection so I told myself that the record would do terribly badly. When you do that to yourself you can't get too comfortable when it does go well. It has taken me a while to swallow.

* I never said that [Torn] was written for me. I did not say it was original.

* Being such a new artist there was so much room for growth that it seemed silly to stick with one person [as producer]. I was eager to experiment and very interested in what they had to offer. I didn't just go in the studio and say 'this is what I want to do'. I was saying 'teach me'. I was scared that using a lot of writer would make it lack continuity but I think it just gives it more flavours. I don't like albums where everything sounds the same.

* It's not really what I do. [Torn] was light relief. It's definitely a pop record; very commercial and marketable and with the whole Alanis Morissette thing companies are trying to come up with something for the market.

* I want my music to be real and honest and grow, to be all me.

* I'm a very happy bunny!! (after winning the MTV Award for best new artist 1998)