…I was a pastor\u2019s kid, so eyes were always on me, even then. I sat in the first pew of the church, and I had to wear a suit every Sunday, because my parents wanted me to be this role model that I didn\u2019t always want to be. I preferred going to punk-rock shows in small venues in New Jersey, where we grew up, wearing my jean jacket and all my band pins. That\u2019s how I fell in love with music, how I became obsessed with it. I\u2019d stand there, watching the singer running around the stage, owning the crowd. I didn\u2019t even notice whatever else was happening onstage. All I could see was the singer.<\/p>\n
But I had certain obligations at that age. If I ever didn\u2019t want to go to church on Sunday, or when I was trying to figure out what religion I wanted to be, or trying to understand spirituality, I would always have to deal with knowing that people were looking up to me. We eventually left our church, Assembly of God, when I was 14. A scandal had erupted involving stolen money, and it caused a big rift in the church. After that the concept of church really upset me for a long time. I mean, I believe in God, and that\u2019s a personal relationship that I have, but I\u2019m not religious in any way<\/b>.<\/p>\n