Melissa Etheridge

I've sold my soul for freedom. It's lonely but it's sweet.

I believed in Obama for social issues. I believe he brought our nation together and healed our racial divide. Martin Luther King's dream came true when he was elected. That's huge.

On the road, as a 'rock star,' there's superficial attention and adulation is thrown at you for a couple of hours - then you're alone in your room and it's lonely.

It took me realizing that a broken heart has never actually killed anyone to find the courage to ask for what I want, in just about every situation. That was part of my own growing up.

Political differences will always generate a healthy debate, but over time the dialogue has become more hateful and at times violent.