Adele Opens Up About Fame, Drinking, and (of Course) Beyoncé: "She's My Michael Jackson"

Updated on Nov 5, 2016 at 7:00 AM

Adele has always been one of Hollywood's most relatable stars thanks to her realistic (and hilarious) workout photos, her obvious love for her fans, and the fact that she always seems to say exactly what's on her mind. In the November issue of Vanity Fair, the gorgeous singer not only sits pretty on the cover of the magazine, but also opens up about serious issues in her life. From her experience with postpartum depression and the pros and cons of fame to her love of Beyoncé and Bette Midler, see her best quotes below.

On her struggle with postpartum depression: "I had really bad postpartum depression after I had my son, and it frightened me. . . . My friends who didn't have kids would get annoyed with me, whereas I knew I could just sit there and chat absolute mush with my friends who had children, and we wouldn't judge each other. One day I said to a friend, 'I f*ckin' hate this,' and she just burst into tears and said, 'I f*ckin' hate this, too.' And it was done. It lifted. My knowledge of postpartum — or post-natal, as we call it in England — is that you don't want to be with your child; you're worried you might hurt your child; you're worried you weren't doing a good job. But I was obsessed with my child. I felt very inadequate; I felt like I'd made the worst decision of my life. It can come in many different forms. Eventually I just said, I'm going to give myself an afternoon a week, just to do whatever the f*ck I want without my baby. A friend of mine said, 'Really? Don't you feel bad?' I said, I do, but not as bad as I'd feel if I didn't do it."
On how people have treated her since she started making money: "I don't care about money. I'm British, and we don't have that . . . thing of having to earn more money all the time. I don't come from money; it's not that important a part of my life. Obviously I have nice things, and I live in a nicer area than I grew up in. That was my goal from the age of seven: it was 'I ain't living here.' The problem is you can't talk about the downside of fame, because people have hope, and they cling to the hope of what it would be like to be famous, to be adored, to be able to create and do nice things . . . money makes everyone act so bizarrely. It's like they become intimidated by it, like I'm wearing my f*ckin' money."
On her enduring love of Beyoncé and Bette Midler: "[Beyoncé] is my Michael Jackson," and, "I've obviously loved [Bette] for years. I like her humor, but she's a f*cking great singer, a really amazing singer. When I watched her show, I felt like I was really watching the last legend. No one's made like that anymore."
On everyone's obsession with technology: "People would rather have a photo to show to people than actually enjoy a moment. It's weird — when I first started out, nearly 10 years ago, no one had their phones out. I'd go onstage to people. Now I go onstage to 18,000 phones. It's pretty because of the lights . . . but no one is actually looking at the world — they're on their phones all the time. Also, this Wi-Fi, you watch, it's going to f*ckin' kill our insides . . . it's just floating around. I'm telling you, we'll find out in 25 years."
On her relationship with alcohol after becoming a mom: "Having a hangover with a child is torture. Just imagine an annoying three-year-old who knows something's wrong; it's hell. I used to love to be drunk, but as I got more famous I would wake up the next morning and think, 'What the f*ck did I say and who the f*ck did I say it to?' I can see from an outsider's perspective that I will never write songs as good as the ones that are on 21, but I'm not as indulgent as I was then, and I don't have time to fall apart like I did then. I was completely off my face writing that album, and a drunk tongue is an honest one. I would drink two bottles of wine, and I would chain-smoke. Then I'd write the lyrics down and the next morning think, F*ck, that's quite good. Then I'd find the melody. But since I've had my baby, I'm not as carefree as I used to be."
On having more children: "I think it's the bravest thing not to have a child; all my friends and I felt pressurized into having kids, because that's what adults do. I love my son more than anything, but on a daily basis, if I have a minute or two, I wish I could do whatever the f*ck I wanted, whenever I want. Every single day I feel like that."