'I nearly lost my marbles'

Siobhan Donaghy was only 16 when she had her first worldwide hit, Overload. The single was nominated for a BRIT Award and made the UK Top 10.

Those were the days when she was one of the trio that made up the Sugababes - one of Britain's most popular girl bands who have sold over 9 million records to date.

Donaghy left the group in 2001 due to disagreements with her bandmates and went on to pursue a solo career. Now, the 23-year-old British singer and songwriter has just released her new album, Ghosts.

In an e-mail interview with tabloid!, Donaghy reveals that she's happy, she's proud and she's back - refreshed and renewed.

Excerpts:

Tell me about your new album, Ghosts, which has just been released. Where did you draw your inspiration?

I started making this album when I was in a transitional period in my life. I had split up with my boyfriend of three years and also parted ways with my record label London Records. Although I knew I loved writing music and that I would make another record somehow, I had a good few challenges ahead of me.

Everyone I had worked with musically on the last record had moved onto different projects of their own and were not living in the UK anymore. I got a call from James Sanger, the producer of Ghosts, about 12 months before I eventually went out to work with him and we seemed to rub each other up the wrong way on the phone.

But when I finally went to work with him I found myself in a 500-year-old manor in the north of France, making the record I know I couldn't have made anywhere else.

You write your own songs. How would you describe your style of music?

I look to such artists as The Cocteau Twins, Annie Lennox, Brian Eno, Kate Bush... They all have something in common in that they have quite a quirky, eccentric, very British sound. I wanted to capture it and put my own spin on this genre of music.

The title itself is a little dark and perhaps a departure from your former album names. Why?

I actually think that although this is the most emotive record I have made to date, it isn't such a departure from my other work. I dealt with some dark issues on my previous solo record Revolution in Me, including a struggle with depression and this album felt like I was laying my ghosts to rest!

Would you say you are entering a new era in your career?

I think that this year in particular I have realised that I am not tied to what I do. There was a time when I felt trapped as I left school and was home tutored at 14 to meet the schedule demands of the Sugababes. It feels liberating to expand what I do and to learn new things.

How is life otherwise?

At the moment I am immersed in the new Harry Potter book... I just can't help myself. I even queued at midnight for it! And as it's [music] festival season I have been seeing a lot of bands play. Just last weekend I went to a festival called Lovebox in Victoria Park, London, and saw Blondie, Patrick Wolf, Sly and the Family Stone and a band I hadn't heard of but am an immediate fan of: The Bees!

And life in the dating scene? Are you seeing anyone at the moment?

I sure am. I was single for a marathon 3 years... it might have been longer come to think of it, but I met a lovely young man over the new year period and we've been going strong ever since.

Describe your ideal type of man.

Christian Bale....will that do? Hehe!

Tell me about your former band. First of all, how did the name Sugababes even come about?

Our manager at the time was a guy called Ron Tom. And he came up with the name. I believe he also named the All Saints after a road in West London.

Why did you leave the band? Some say it's because there was hostility between you and Keisha.

That's kind of hit the nail on the head really. I was a part of the Sugababes for four years and have no regrets about being in the band or about leaving the band.

How is life after leaving the group? Are you happier?

I am happier. I took control of my life when I left and it was a weight off my shoulders. I don't like the idea of relying on the mood of someone else each day. If they got out of their bed the wrong side that morning, then I had to deal with it. I couldn't live like that!

When you look at the continuing success that the Sugababes have had since you left, do you sometimes regret not staying?

Not at all. It all depends on how you measure your success. I think that if I got my studio guy to round up 12 songs from the "hit makers" on the writing scene, I'd be commercially successful too. I could have chosen that route and I didn't. I write my own albums and my fans appreciate that. How else are you supposed to grow as an artist....it cannot be about money!

When you look back at the whole of your career, what moment do you remember as the best?

The day we finished mastering the new album Ghosts. It was a long time in the making. It put James into rehab twice! I nearly lost my marbles... but we got there in the end.... all for one CD's worth of music! I love my job.

So what are your plans for the future?

My manager wouldn't recognise me if I didn't constantly request holidays to remote places where I can backpack. Then it will be another album. Along the way I'm hoping to find the inspiration for the next bunch of tales I'll write.

Sugababes No 1 hits

The Sugababes were created when Keisha Buchanan and Mutya Buena, friends since they were only 8, were introduced to Siobhan Donaghy at a 1998 party.