Q&A: Patrick Stump

On the new album, do you attempt to impersonate anyone?
On "What a Catch, Donnie," I sing really deep, and I was like, "Wow, I'm just impersonating Bowie." All of a sudden I had a British accent.

Obviously you've become more comfortable performing.
When we were nominated for a Grammy [in 2006], I remember being there and saying, "I don't belong here." Elvis Costello was sitting across from me, and Stevie Wonder was up onstage, and I said, "I need to step my game up, just so I don't feel disrespectful." After that, I started practicing a lot. I'd sing along with records.

Who inspired you the most?
Otis Redding going balls-out, when he's really going for it. He also had incredible dynamics. Otis wasn't always in key, but he was always singing the right way. "These Arms of Mine" is one of the most perfect recordings ever. That's the kind of stuff you might get once in a lifetime.

What are your favorite Pete Wentz lyrics on the album?
"I will never believe in anything again" — I think it came from when Bush was re-elected. I love the complexity of a line that simple.

I thought you guys were all straight-edge, but I recently saw a photo of Pete drinking alcohol.
Pete got older, and I'm legal now, but we're still not a partying band. I'm too busy to get drunk. I'll have a glass of wine at dinner, but that's about it. I've still never gone up to a bar and ordered a drink. I have a crippling fear of doing it because I don't know the basic social conventions of doing it. I've only seen it in movies.