"When I started to write this record I just got a lot out of my system. I had a lot to say about a lot of topics and the music was just taking on this real heavy vibe to it and I liked it", says Doro in a thick German accent down the line from New York during press days for her new album _Fight_ (SPV). "I knew that this album was shaping up to something good and I was glad that we were gonna record it live and not be too technical in what we were doing, which was something that I didn't like with the last album [2000's _Calling the Wild_]. This was back to the basics. This was the album I wanted to make."

But is she a fan of the studio experience?

"I don't mind spending the time doing the album in a studio and making it all come together for the final product, but playing out live and meeting up with the fans is something very special to me. What I do like about being in the studio is when it all comes together nicely -- that was something I sensed with _Fight_."

After all these years, she seems to be still excited about doing all of this, case in point the footage of Doro playing with Motorhead during the song "Born to Raise Hell" (with ex-UKJ/LOA singer Whitfield Crane as well) on the new Motorhead DVD _Boneshaker_. You still can rock out, sister!

She laughs. "Yeah, that was a lot of fun, but I was so nervous. I just went to the show to see Motorhead play. I was asked by Lemmy to sing with them and I didn't know if I could do it. It was an honour to sing with them, though. I had fun."

After so many years of being in the music business -- with Warlock and her solo career -- does Doro find things getting easier for her?

"I don't know why, but I still feel the same as I did when I first started playing in a band and singing. There is much that I get out of playing and creating music. I mean, it has always been hard to get things going and to make music and be a part of the business, but when things start to get harder for me I get more focused and more energetic and into what I am doing."

She adds, "If I knew I wasn't into it or the fans weren't into it, I wouldn't do this; but I know the fans are still there and I am still here doing this. If fans come away from each album with a song or a few songs they like, then I am happy about all of that. I just want my fans to get something out of my music."

The thing that sets Doro's _Fight_ album apart from her past release is the rawness and heavy set tone and deliverance of the lyrics and vocals, not to mention the heavy guitar work, making this album stand out as one of her heaviest ones in memory. The title track is awesome, as is the duet with Type O Negative's Peter Steele ("Descent") and the songs "Legends Never Die" and her favourite, "Fight by Your Side". Does the singer ever look back at her career and try to analyze what she has done, or does she always look to the future with her music?

"That is a good question. I mean, I can't ignore what I have done and I am proud of a lot of the records I have made, but each record is a new experience and made up of a lot of situations and events that have happened to me around the time of the recording. I never really compare stuff and I always try to make the best record that I can at that time in my life, and I know my fans know that."

But after years of performing, are there still people out there not willing to give Doro a chance because she is female?

"Yeah, I still get that, but you know what? I have fans who like me and my music and that is fine for me. People can say what they want, but as long as my fans keep buying my music and supporting me, then I'll be here. There is so much going on in this music industry and everyone struggles, but all you can do is keep making your music and rocking out. I never really cared for how people in the music business perceived me. I just want people to get something out of my music."

"I have learned so much about how this business works since I started in it", she continues on. "I mean, you learn a lot from just having to work alongside a label and release records, etc. It was totally new to me and I just jumped right into it. I am very into the music business and my career and I keep in touch with what is going on. I don't have a family or kids, so this is all that I have -- this is my family. I am so into it and I think it still shows after all these years. You can tell when singers or bands are getting tired of it, because they seem to make the same albums. I never want to get to that point in my career, so that is why I am always trying to bring fresh ideas to the Doro sound but still sound like Doro. It is always something very emotional for me when making a record."

And the emotions she gets from _Fight_?

Doro concludes, "I just get this real feeling of being able to let loose and make a record that is heavy, emotional and really true to my heart. I think I really was able to channel a lot of my deep down emotions into this album and have it work out superbly in the end. I couldn't have asked for a better record in 2002."