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RH: Well, it's been a crazy couple of months, hasn't it?
Duffy: I looked at the diary today and there's literally only one week off in the whole of 2008. It's a bit daunting, but it's exhilarating, too. I really don't know what's around the corner. I suppose that's the same for loads of people, though. I have friends back home in Wales who are looking for new jobs, or who've just come back from travelling, who are in the same boat. Me releasing a record isn't really any different.
RH: Except, suddenly the whole world wants a piece of you. That must feel weird?
Duffy: It's funny, I spent four years working on my album and I've hardly even discussed my music with my friends or family, so it feels odd that so many people are suddenly interested. The result is that I seem to be spending a lot of time talking about myself. I'm actually learning a lot about myself through it, but some questions are impossible!
RH: Like what?
Duffy: "Where did you get your voice from?" How do you answer that? I wish I could say something exciting like, ‘I found it hidden in a box under my mother's bed labelled, Voice,’ but it's just my voice! It's like asking someone with brown eyes where they got them.
RH: Anything in the press that has really annoyed you?
Duffy: People saying that I called myself Duffy, rather than my full name, Amy Duffy, to avoid references to Amy Winehouse or Amy Macdonald. That's just silly. Duffy is my surname, it's what everyone called me at school and it's what I decided about six years ago that I wanted to be known as. The other thing I get a lot of is that I'm a naive little girl from Wales, but I'm 23 and I've lived in London for two years. And while we're on the subject of annoying things, I seem to have developed a fear of flying!
RH: Four years is a long time to make an album – how come it took so long?
Duffy: Well at the start no one knew I was a songwriter, so I was having songs written for me. It wasn't until I was encouraged to write that we really found out who I was. Jeannette Lee and Geoff Travis from Rough Trade heard some demos I was singing on, and I met up with them in a pub and we instantly connected. So together Jeannette and I embarked on making a record. At the beginning we were searching to find out in what capacity I was going to make it. Then we struggled a little geographically since I was living in North Wales. But about a year and half ago I moved to London and that time has been really, really productive.
RH: Was there a sense of small town girl coming to the big city?
Duffy: I was working closely with Rough Trade, and at first I had little confidence, maybe I was a bit untrusting due to my experiences in the past. At 18 I felt quite battered and bruised, I had done everything I could to get to where I wanted to go. But when I started working with Jeannette I began to relax, and went on a journey of discovering music.
RH: Although you live in London you're obviously still very connected to Wales. Does that influence your songwriting?
Duffy: I think North Wales is my version of Southern soul, because it’s really green and slow-paced which influenced a lot of my earlier songs. But as I got to the city, my tempo was upped and I felt a bit more strength in some areas. My songs became more about society. Syrup and Honey is about how people who love each other, family or otherwise, can't find the time to be with one another. No one song defines me – the whole record does.
RH: You worked with Suede's Bernard Butler on your album. Were you starstruck when you first met him?
Duffy: I have to say, I didn’t know who Bernard was when I met him! I mean, I knew Suede because I’m a girl of the 90s, but only on the radio. So I wasn’t a crazy Bernard Butler fan when I met him, but now I'm a genuine fan. It's just a really natural working relationship. I don't walk into the room thinking, 'Oh my god I'm in the studio with one of the greatest guitarists ever'.
RH: Do you write about personal experiences?
Duffy: No. Of course there's an element of that in there, but I don't write with the intention of being autobiographical. And I don't feel like I've got any love hangovers or anything like that - I'm not writing messages to anyone about how I felt about them, I'm just writing stories.
RH: What was it like growing up in North Wales?
Duffy: The town where I grew up, Nefyn, was pretty remote, and there wasn't much to do. When we were about 12, me and my two best friends, Delyth and Delyth (we call them "the two Delyths"), would go to my dad's shed, light candles, tell spooky stories and smoke lots of cigarettes. Actually, maybe that's where I got my voice from! [When I was older] I was a terror. I'd have about five bands going on, and each band wouldn't know about the other. I was like a pessimistic lover: I knew that none of them would work out, but I would keep them on the go for enjoyment's sake.
RH: You did achieve some err, early success though coming second in Wawffactor.
Duffy: I kind of got myself into something I couldn't get out of. I didn't understand it; I had no idea what I was doing. It was the worst experience of my life. I had no faith after that, no self-esteem. I didn't trust my judgment.
RH: Your voice is remarkably soulful. Is it completely natural or something you’ve had to work at?
Duffy: My voice has always been there but in the past two years I've had to understand it a bit more. The truth is I have a different range that I can sing in and I think it comes through on record. I don't think I stick to the one aspect of my voice, though – sometimes I'll use a different part of my voice. I've come to understand my voice more, cutting away the rough edges if you like – though it's still rough!
RH: Who are your main influences and what are you listening to right now?
Duffy: I love Scott Walker. His early stuff like If You Go Away, it's so romantic. I’ve got into Bowie. I'm obviously familiar now with Suede, The Smiths, Dylan, Leonard Cohen, there's so many. I could just go on and on, I'm just obsessed. I enjoy so much finding a record I've never heard before. It's like the most beautiful summer's day to me, I just feel so overwhelmed.
RH: Touring's tough going, but most artists say it's the best thing about this whole damn business. Do you agree?
Duffy: Oh yes! I get on stage and I sing my heart out and I feel like I've fallen in love. I've never had a feeling like it. I've never fallen in love by the way, so I don't really know what love is. That's why I write about it, I suppose. When I get on stage and sing these songs I feel like I could cry. It's not about the money, it's not about the fame. I'm just going to keep going. I never want to stop this.
RH: But you'll have to stop eventually or you'll burn out! Once this round of touring is over; what’s next?
Duffy: I want to go out and have a laugh, and maybe I'll go on a couple of dates. Why not? I want to have a couple of dates! Basically, I want to do all the normal things that any other single 23-year-old wants to do.
Read the latest about Duffy at www.iamduffy.com Rockferry is in shops now

And so does the rest of the universe. But somehow she’s keeping her Welsh feet firmly on the ground. Interview by Chris Apput

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