That notion was essentially played on repeat during an interview last week with the actress-turned-rocker, who will tour Europe this summer with her band The Pretty Reckless. While the teen has lived sort of a rock n’ roll lifestyle for a few years now (in print anyway), she’s actually a rookie in the music scene. Reckless dropped their first album “Light Me Up” just over a month ago, and has received considerable radio airplay and buzz. A good reason why? The album is pretty fn good. Filling a void that’s been missing after Courtney Love slayed us with Hole in the mid-90s (not last year), Momsen’s powerful vocals and rawness could bring us to a new era of women rockers. This generation already has its Madonna (read: Gaga) so why shouldn’t they have their own Love.

I caught up with the pretty face who melts faces by phone last week, and asked her about silencing the critics, being labeled “a bad girl,” and whether or not she’s done with acting altogether which is totally possible. Rock and read on.

With all that has been written about you in the papers and blogosphere how awesome is it to get some props for your music?

It’s definitely something to overcome, but every musician has his or her own challenges. The reception to the record has been amazing. I just want them to give it a chance, and ignore the rest. Come to the show…

It seems there has been such a drought in terms of female-fronted rock acts. Would you agree?
I think there’s been a drought in rock music in general. I tend to not think of it as all female. Most of my influences are males. I think definitely there’s been a lull in rock music. It’s just time to come back to it with us and a lot of other bands on the rise.

How happy are you that the album is actually out now, and people can hear what you worked so hard on?
It was the hardest thing for me. I worked on it for two years. I am really relieved that it’s finally come out and I can let the music speak for itself. You can talk all you want, but at the end of the day if the record is not good, it doesn’t matter. The reception has been great. We went from playing a 100-seat club to a 3,000 venue, and once the record came out, we’ve started seeing fans singing every word.

What was the songwriting process like for you?
It wasn’t really a direct process. As a writer, you’re open for anything to inspire you. If I knew where the inspiration came from, it’d be a lot easier to write the record. But, it’s a constant process.

I’m curious. You modeled for Madonna’s clothing line. Did you have any interaction wit her? Did she give you any advice?
Not really. It was a job task but I’m not really one for advice. I take my own advice.

Do you have any regrets?
I don’t really like to look back. It’s a waste of time. I look forward. I’m exciting to tour this summer in Japan, Europe… Ireland, Russia, Australia..it’s a world tour really.

Your role as a rock star will likely take time away from acting. Will you go back to it at some point?
I don’t know… maybe at some point. It’s certainly not what I think about. It’s something I enjoyed and it’s a big part of my life since three years old, but I’m really happy doing what I’m doing. I won’t say I’ll never act again but music is what I think about.

I realize you just released your first but have you thought of the second album yet?

It will be a rock progression but in a different way. I’m just really excited and can’t wait to get back on the road. We leave Wednesday…

Are there any misconceptions about you that you’d like to get off your chest?
I don’t know… probably most things that are written are misconceptions or done in a negative light. They have no idea what I’m really like and you’re not going to find it out from an article or an interview. Buy the record if you want to know what I’m like. Hear the record… that’s my heart and soul there. Judge what I’m actually putting out there. You can’t change what people write. I work 24 hours a day, and I’m really luck to be able to do what I do.

Well, they probably throw you under the bus because you’re so young…
Yeah. I don’t care. I don’t read [what they say]. I don’t even have a computer.

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Fresh off their very first headlining tour, Momsen tells Zap2it that The Pretty Reckless is hitting the summer festival circuit overseas.

“We actually leave [this week] for Germany, so we’re doing a bunch of summer festivals all over Europe and Asia and Australia,” she says. “We’re kind of going everywhere for the next couple months doing the festival circuit, which is awesome, and then in the fall we come back to the states and there will be — I’m not allowed to talk about it yet — but there will be a big announcement and we’re really excited about it.”

Their debut album, “Light Me Up” was only just released in the U.S., but has been out for almost a year now in the U.K. While they’ve been earning the respect of rock fans stateside, Momsen admits that the fanbase is on a larger scale over in Europe — something that may change in the near future. She hints that said “big announcement” will relate to a tour and advises fans to stay tuned to her Twitter account for more details.

The young woman behind the bands emotional and often dark lyrics will celebrate her 18th birthday this July. Momsen’s age may come as a surprise to those who aren’t familiar with her previous work, but she credits her musical inspiration to a unique perspective on life. To an extent, at least.

“It’s hard to define where inspiration comes from,” she says. “If I knew where it came from it would be a lot f***ing easier to write a record. The record, it’s very much about my life. It’s very autobiographical in a lot of ways, but it’s written metaphorically. So not every line is meant to be taken literally, but it is very reflecting of my life.”

Adding “I live a different life than a lot of people, so of course that adds something but I don’t really know what that is… Anyone who starts working at a young age has a different kind of perspective on life. You travel the world and you’re working a job and working from a very young age. You get insight into the world and maybe view the world a different way, which I feel like I do.”

Momsen’s sound may be a far cry from that of Britney Spears, but one thing the “GG” alum has in common with many other ladies her age are fond memories of the “Oops!… I did it again” singer. She tells us that Spears was the very first big arena performer she ever watched.

“I was a big Britney fan growing up,” she admits. “I loved the Beatles, Nirvana and The Who, but I was a dancer so I totally loved Britney when I was dancing.”

Momsen didn’t have much to say about the upcoming “Femme Fatale” tour, but still wishes Brit Brit the best. “If she’s doing what she loves then that’s great,” she says.

We’re really digging this actress turned musician’s latest project and are already looking forward to their next album… Even if Momsen is playing coy with us about when it might happen.

“We are always writing,” she tells us regarding their new tracks. “As a writer you never stop, but it’s nothing definitive yet.”

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While “Gossip Girl” finished out its fourth season without Little J, Taylor Momsen has been keeping busy working on her true passion — music.

The Pretty Reckless frontwoman recently released the band’s debut album, “Light Me Up” to rave reviews in the U.S., while they already have a strong following overseas. Having just wrapped their first headlining tour, Zap2it spoke with Momsen about her exit from the hit CW show and whether or not she’d ever return to acting.

“I don’t know,” she says of a possible return to “GG.” “I’m really happy to be on the road and to be able to tour and play. I mean, that’s what I want to do with my life. So, I’m definitely in a good spot right now and I’m really happy about being able to do that… No plans for it at the moment, but who knows.”

While she’s undoubtedly talented in both fields, Momsen suggests — as she has many other times — that a career as a child actor wasn’t her choice to make. Just shy of 18-years-old, the starlet isn’t convinced that she’ll ever return to acting.

“Music was this thing that I chose, and I chose that at a young age,” she says. “Acting was very much a job for me and it became even more so as I got older and older. I enjoy it fine, but I don’t really miss it right now. I don’t know if I’ll go back to it ever… I’m not gonna say that I’m not, but I don’t know if I will.

“I know that I’ll be making records for the rest of my life. Whether they’ll be put out or not, who knows, but I won’t stop writing,” she adds. “I wouldn’t know what to do with myself. It very much defines who I am to me and the people around me, but I’m sure it’s still kind of new to the rest of the world.”

While fans and pundits alike have been critical of Jenny Humphrey’s exit from the show, Momsen has remained close with a few of her co-stars, and admits that she’s found support in the “GG” fanbase, as well.

“I love Kelly,” she says of on-screen step mother, Kelly Rutherford. “Kelly and Connor [Paolo, Eric van der Woodsen] have come to bunch of shows. I love both of them, they’re very supportive.”

Adding, “There definitely are [Pretty Reckless] fans who were fans of the show first… but now they’re die hard fans of the band, not just because I was on ‘Gossip Girl.’ And then there’s people that I’m sure looked it up and were like ‘Yeah, f*** that.’”

As for her exit from the show, we asked Momsen if she was happy creatively with the way her character said goodbye.

“Yeah, I mean sure,” she says. “I didn’t have any say over storylines. I don’t know if anyone else did, but I certainly didn’t. You show up and you do what the script says. I don’t have any creative say. So yeah, it’s cool. And I’m happy to be off and able to tour.”

The band is preparing to embark on a worldwide summer festival circuit, but Momsen promises a big announcement in the fall regarding what sounds like a potential stateside tour.
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Last fall, after flipping off most of the Upper East Side, Gossip Girl’s Taylor Momsen toured the country in support of Light Me Up, her surprisingly accomplished debut album with The Pretty Reckless. Well, yesterday it was confirmed that Momsen (and former costar Jessica Szohr) won’t be returning to the show that made her famous enough to have a music career in the first place. Now that she’s a full-time rock star, we wanted to find out how she likes life on the road. Let’s just say, Little J. wouldn’t last an hour.

1. I hate many things about touring, but the worst is the lack of showering. The guys I’m on the road with start to smell like moldy cheese a er a week.

2. I hate playing shows outside during the daytime. Rock music needs lights!

3. I hate when they forget the Red Bull on our catering rider. How else am I supposed to work on no sleep?

4. I hate when the bus driver stops abruptly and I fall out of my bunk. I still have a bruise from the last time.

5. I hate Porta-Pottys. Umm… no thanks. If the town dump smells better than the bathroom facilities, that’s a problem!

6. I hate fast food. (Although I will make an exception for Del Taco.)

7. I hate syncing period cycles with the other women on tour. It’s not necessarily bad for me, but I’m sure the guys don’t appreciate it.

8. I hate when my dog, Petal, can’t come on the road with me. Ever since the “incident” that took place in our guitar player’s shoes, she hasn’t really been embraced by the guys.

9. I hate going through customs, especially at 4am when we we’re sleeping!

10. I hate when my manager tries to make me wear pants.

Photo by Lauren Dukoff.

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