Melissa Etheridge

By Joel Stein Sunday, Oct. 17, 1999
    • Melissa Etheridge's new album, Breakdown, is now in stores.

    Q. Do your parents own VH1?

    A. I know, I'm all over the dang thing. It's vhME1.

    Q. When you were 11 you wrote a song about Vietnam. You were this close to being Natalie Merchant, weren't you?

    A. So close. I came to that crossroads, and I said, "No. Let's rock."

    Q. Fans toss their bras onstage at you. And you wear leather pants a lot. Are you the lesbian Tom Jones?

    A. Someone has to be. It happens a lot when [it's] in an article, and everyone takes an extra bra to the show.

    Q. People aren't taking off their bras?

    A. Some of them do, and it's awful. I pay my crew extra if they catch the bra before it hits the ground and remove it.

    Q. Your partner Julie Cypher collects bowling balls. What does her therapist say about that?

    A. I don't know. But it's hard to go, "Look, honey, I've been around the world, and I've collected you bowling balls."

    Q. Maybe it's just a test of your love. She thought, "What's the heaviest thing I can get someone to bring back for me?"

    A. She's a funny girl.

    Q. Did Brad Pitt father your children?

    A. Joel, I'm not going to tell you.

    Q. It is a man, right?

    A. Yes, it's a man.

    Q. And he's famous.

    A. Yeah. Otherwise we'd say, "Yes, it's some Joe down the street."

    Q. So it's Brad Pitt.

    A. It's not Brad Pitt.

    Q. Come on, it's better if it's Brad Pitt. It's good for his career, for your career.

    A. And it's good for my kids.

    Q. When you played bars, you did Barry Manilow covers. What songs did you do?

    A. I did a whole medley. I opened up with Daybreak.

    Q. I like Daybreak.

    A. You are so queer.