Ingrid Michaelson Won't Let Herself Take Time Off From Music

Ingrid Michaelson's artistic biological clock is ticking, it seems. The New York-based indie-pop singer songwriter turned 31 in December and, she tells Spinner, she doesn't intend to rest on her laurels.

"I'm not a spring chicken. Not that I'm an old lady, but in this world, in terms of music, I'm already thinking ahead and I feel like I have to work really hard now," she says. "Then, in a few years when I want a calmer life, I can afford to [slow down]. There really isn't that much time to take a break right now."

Michaelson, who last year released her version of 'Parachute,' the hit song she wrote for British singer Cheryl Cole, has released three albums and an EP in five years and intends to keep up the momentum.

"I've seen people take time off and they don't seem to recover from it," she says. "I'm not ready for that yet. When you reach a certain point, it's easier to take time off because you have a bigger fan base. There's a weird middle ground, at the beginning, you're playing to 50 people a night. Once you hit the 3,000-people mark you can afford to take time off. There's the middle ground where you're building to that and you have to keep revisiting these places to build a fan base. I'm in that middle ground. I hope to hit it big in the next few years."

Michaelson thinks that living in bustling New York City helps her keep work buzzing. "Lucky me, I live in New York, where there's always something to be done," she says semi-sarcastically. "If I lived in the mountains of Montana, I'd probably take more time off. So, when I am at home in New York I'm not necessarily relaxing. I'm ready to get some work done and play some shows. I'm always writing, I'm always champing at the bit."

Ingrid Michaelson's 'Parachute' Video

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