Sorry, Not Sorry

AFTER A DECADE OF TRYING TO BE EVERYTHING TO EVERYONE, SINGER LILY ALLEN BROKE DOWN—AND FOUND OUT WHO SHE REALLY WAS.

Shame is such a currency these days, especially when it’s used against women. So many of the decisions I’ve made in the past have been attempts to try to avoid being shamed. And I’m finally done with it.

Over the past four years I’ve learned a lot about myself—namely that I’m not very good at being a famous person. The fast life is no longer for me: a) I can’t keep up, and b) it’s not interesting anymore. I scaled back every area of my life, from my personal relationships to my music, until I felt like I was in an honest and truthful place. Totally stripped down: That’s how my house looks, that’s how myphone book looks, and that’s how my fourth record, No Shame, was created.

My relationship with shame started back when my début album came out in England at the end of 2006 and I was getting pursued by tabloids. They hate women and like to make them feel scared and humiliated— that’s their whole M.O.