When Lady Sovereign bared all emotionally during a show a few years back, it was easy to tell that all was not well with Sov in America. After much hype and a legendary audition for then-president of Def Jam, Jay-Z, the British MC was done with the label after the disappointing response to her only album, Public Warning, in the States. Now that's she back with her own record label and a new album, Sov finally reveals the details of her departure from Def Jam. She states that she was tired of performing the same songs repeatedly without being allowed to record new ones and went on "strike," which naturally upset the label. The decision to part ways was mutual on both sides, according to her. During this time, she also became depressed and started taking anti-depressants, which she overdosed on one night and had to be rushed to the hospital. Despite that recent turbulent period, it seems as if Sovereign is in better spirits now, with the lighter tone of her recent material and the lessened pressure of not being on a label as big as Def Jam, so future onstage breakdowns are pretty unlikely for the time being.

Lady Sovereign's latest album, Jigsaw, is available now on Midget/EMI. [NME]