Ani DiFranco: Righteously Outspoken

by Matt Gewolb

Ani DiFranco is not an easy person to reach these days. The always provocative and outspoken DiFranco has a new album hitting stores September 30th, and a host of high-profile gigs to attend to, including a performance alongside James Taylor at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. But we managed to track her down on her boyfriend's cell phone somewhere in the Central Time Zone to talk with the Buffalo, NY native about potential Vice Presidents, a brilliant plan to pay off Hillary Clinton's campaign debt, and the dangers of judging presidential candidates based on their private parts.

Crawadddy!: Hey Ani, how are you?

Ani DiFranco: Good. I'm doing great.

Crawdaddy!: Excellent. Well, let's get started with presidential politics, a subject that's near and dear to your heart. Now, this will be old news by the time this interview is published but who are you hoping gets Obama's VP nod?

DiFranco: Oh shit, I don't know. I don't give a fuck. I just want Obama to be president. Sorry, I should have a more sophisticated answer than that. But for me, it doesn't matter. I don't think he needs anything or anyone to compensate for his shortcomings. I think that he's an intelligent, educated, thoughtful, caring person and that's all I care about in a president.

To read the rest, make the jump.

Crawdaddy! was founded by Paul Williams in 1966 and was the first U.S. magazine of rock criticism. John Lennon, Cameron Crowe, P.J. O'Rourke and many others have contirubted to its pages, and it is currently owned by Wolfgang's Vault, home to the legendary rock promoter Bill Graham's archive.