9 Quick Questions for Patti LaBelle

Grammy-winning R&B legend Patti LaBelle, 79, isn’t slowing down any time soon. She’s touring the U.S. through April and is selling out shows, and her Patti’s Good Life food brand is a big seller as well — with a reported $20 million in revenue last year. “The Godmother of Soul” tells AARP what inspired her to start the brand, what it feels like to step on stage and what adjustments she’s made since her 1995 diabetes diagnosis.

Any big plans in the works for your 80th?

Just to celebrate like it’s 1999 when I turn 80.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

To believe in yourself. Whenever someone tells you “no,” you know that there’s a great “yes” in you, because you know you’re doing great work. So really believe in yourself, and don’t listen to the naysayers, because most of them don’t want you to make it. Listen to yourself, and believe what you have is a great product.

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Any “bucket list” items on your list?

No, I don’t. No bucket list. I’m not a traveler. I couldn’t care less about going on vacations and stuff like that. I’m very happy at home. I’m very boring. I’m not adventurous at all.

What do you like to do at home?

I love to cook. I watch TV and clean. I love to clean. Cleaning baseboards and windowsills — things that create dirt and dust that a lot of people don’t see, but I see it. When I see it, I go crazy. If it’s 3 in the morning, I know that I have to go and do something to that baseboard in the kitchen. And so I get up and I do it. I’m very, very anal about cleaning and organizing. So that’s what I do. I organize, I clean, and I cook. And I have fun watching TV and walking my dog.

What kind of dog?

A shih tzu. He’s 12 years old — Mr. Cuddles. He has his own bed, but of course, he wants to be with mommy. So I have an extra bed on my bed for him. [When I’m touring] he goes to a friend who lives in L.A. He goes to Hollywood with the stars, and he has fun there, because there are a lot of dogs for him to play with. I never take him with me. Once — I think it was a play that I was doing — and we had him backstage, and he almost ran on stage. So I said, “That’s your last trip backstage.” Once he heard me singing, he knows my voice, and he tried to come for me.