In interviews, R&B singer Macy Gray [ tickets ] tends to be a woman of few words. She struggles to answer questions, often pausing for several seconds first. But when it comes to opening for David Bowie [ tickets ], she doesn't mince words.

"It's definitely a challenge," said Gray, in her smoky, cartoon-like voice. "It's a lot of fun but it's a challenge because I'm used to headlining. Putting in a 45-minute set, you kind of have to adjust to everyone else's tour."

Gray is her genre's utility player. She effortlessly crosses the lines separating dance, Motown-era soul, hip-hop, R&B, funk and rock on her latest album, "The Trouble with Being Myself," her third effort for Epic Records.

The divorced mother of three, Gray talked briefly to liveDaily about the tour and her songwriting process.

liveDaily: "The Trouble With Being Myself" is much different than your previous works, "The Id" and "On How Life Is." Was that the feel you were going for?

Macy Gray: I wasn't really planning on it being different. Over time, you grow and you learn different things. Your album comes out all different. That's all. It wasn't anything intentional. But I did want to try new stuff.

How have you grown since "On How Life Is" was released?

My life is different than when I first started out, when I made my first album. I had different things to say. I learned a lot about music.

What was the most important thing that you learned about music?

Hmmm. To be able to make music for a living. It's a lot of fun. I'm having a ball.

Tell me about your songwriting process. Do you write mostly on the road? In the studio?

I write in the studio. I get a lot of ideas, of course, outside the studio. But I write the lyrics while I'm in there. I get a lot of ideas when I'm writing with my band, when we're jamming. I get a lot of ideas like that. In the studio, there's no distractions. It's a lot easier in the studio.