David Bowie instantly springs to mind. When I was 17, Bowie was already reinventing every rule in the book, an otherworldly creature on the front of album covers such as Ziggy Stardust, Diamond Dogs and Aladdin Sane.
He was a visionary extraordinaire and an inspiration for lost teenagers like me, who longed to escape grey suburban entrapment. I performed Under Pressure with him at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert at Wembley Stadium in 1992. To have that chance to work with him was like catching lightning in a bottle.
I was born into scarcity, with no guarantee of a better future. My father worked in the shipyards from the age of 14, not knowing if he would always have a job, if there would be a contract for another boat, if the men were going to go on strike, or if there’d be an income coming in.
There was a fair bit of stress in my family, a feeling that life is a constant struggle. I was always told “You’ll see when you grow up” and “Money doesn’t grow on trees”, so it felt as if growing up held some kind of inherent threat. There was this sense of “Enjoy your childhood, because when you grow up, you’ll see that life’s tough”. They weren’t wrong, but it felt threateningly doom-laden.
Classical flute became my passport out. I was a naive 17-year-old who managed to get to the Royal Academy of Music. But I soon realised in London that I was just one of many good flute players and, ultimately, the classical scene wasn’t right for me.
I was a fish out of water. It took me about two-and-a-half years to realise my next goal to become a singer-songwriter. The next catalyst was meeting Dave [Stewart, her partner in the band Eurythmics] in 1975. So much of what’s happened in my life since then stems from our encounter.
The beauty of singing is that you are your own instrument. Singing gives me an exalted feeling. When I start to sing, I step into another way of being – it’s an energy shift. I discovered that as a teenager. I felt it was my destiny to write songs, sing and perform.
I never bought into the idea of working with big fashion labels or wearing expensive designer clothes. I was always more happy shopping in thrift stores, and I still am. Creating my own style and identity gave me a sense of independence and freedom.
One of my favourite photographs of Dave and me is from the Sweet Dreams era in the early 1980s, wearing matching suits we bought from an affordable men’s outfitter.
Annie Lennox: Retrospective, RRP: £50 (Rizzoli International Publications) is out now.
(Hero image credit: Tali Fruchtmann)
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