THE BASICS

WHO IS SHE?: This 28-year-old Brit belle drew flattering comparisons to Sarah McLachlan, Sinead O'Connor and Beth Orton with the crafty folk-pop lyricism and dubby dreaminess of her 1999 debut album, No Angel. Dido -- rhymes with Fido, the name she'd give her dog if she had one -- studied piano and recorder as a lass at London's Guildhall School of Music. Ditching a big-bucks job in book publishing, Dido focused her baby blues on a singing career. She hasn't looked back.

WHAT HAS SHE DONE?:Dido first tasted singing success as a backup vocalist for Faithless, her brother Rollo's multi-platinum band. The track Thank You, off No Angel, landed on the soundtrack to the film Sliding Doors and set the sapphic mood for a love scene between Sharon Stone and Ellen DeGeneres on HBO's If These Walls Could Talk. Another song, Here With Me, is the theme song to Roswell, the WB's teen-alien hit. And then there's that Eminem thing...that's her seductive voice looping on Stan, the suicidal fan-letter ballad on Slim Shady's controversial new album. Dido tours the U.S. starting in July and opens for two August Sting shows in Los Angeles.

WHY DO WE CARE?: Her angelic alto makes songs about heartache hurt so good.

Playboy.com: What's the story behind your name?

Dido: My parents gave it to me. Dido was the queen of Carthage in Latin literature. She was this great warrior queen.

PB: Do you take after her?

Dido: No, 'cause she killed herself. I hope not.

PB: You weren't much of a fighter growing up?

Dido: Well, yeah, I was a fighter, but I wouldn't call myself a warrior queen. I might in my world of fantasies.

PB: Has the Eminem hype taken on a life of its own for you?

Dido: It's really funny. All of a sudden, there I am, touring away, used to my obscurity. Suddenly, all these people are asking me questions like, "What does it feel like to be on an album where he's screaming about killing women and gays and blah blah blah?" and it's like, Omigod, wiiiilll you lighten up. It made me actually feel for him in a funny sort of way that he must get asked these questions every second of his life.

PB: Were you surprised that he adapted your song?

Dido: I was really pleased, 'cause I loved his last album.

PB: That song has been used on the Sliding Doors soundtrack and on an HBO special during a love scene between Sharon Stone and Ellen DeGeneres. Has it surprised you how many places it's shown up?

Dido: It's bizarre. This Mexican girl band, Flans, has covered it as well. It's been on Dawson's Creek. It's funny, it's a song that I loved when I wrote it. I just thought it was really sweet. And I always stood by this being the song on my album that would be a hit. And everyone was like, "What are you talking about?" That song just seems to connect with people. When I'm singing it at shows, people have proposed to their girlfriends. You see all sorts of weird shit happening.

PB: People proposed to their girlfriends?

Dido: This guy proposed to his girlfriend while we were singing the song. He got down on his knees.... It was so funny. I'm not sure if she said yes, though.

PB: You studied classical music growing up. Did you think of music as a career possibility?

Dido: For about a minute. Unfortunately, my main instrument was the recorder. By the time I hit about 13, I was like, "Now there's no way I'm gonna become a professional recorder player." [Laughs] I mean, how uncool. And I'd played every piece there was to play.

PB: I've heard you got your first recorder by less-than-honest means....

Dido: It wasn't exactly grand theft. I took it from the school lost-and-found, because no one else was claiming it. All my friends had one, and my parents wouldn't buy me one. So, yes, I did take one.

PB: How old were you?

Dido: Five. Then I had to play it in secret, when my mum and dad weren't listening.

PB: What are some of the greatest hits for the recorder?

Dido: [Laughs a long, seriously sexy laugh.] Well, I used to play a whole load of stuff that's not for the recorder, that's for the flute. There's quite a lot of Bach concertos you can play on the recorder. All classical music.

PB: Are you going to try to popularize the recorder?

Dido: [Deadpan] No. [Laughs] The thought hadn't even crossed my mind. But now that you mention it.... Oh, I do play it, sometimes, on my records. 'Cause it makes me laugh. I play recorder on that song, Thank You, actually, the Eminem one.

PB: What music influenced you growing up?

Dido: Classical stuff...I was a big fan of the Police. I was quite influenced by a whole lot of reggae, a lot of dub stuff. I went through a New Romantic phase. I grew up in the Eighties. Some of the things I listened to were just terrifying. Music to dress up to, basically. And I dressed appropriately to what music I was listening to.

PB: So you looked like Cyndi Lauper for a while?

Dido: Oh, I did all of it. I went through a goth stage. I hated the music, but I went through a goth-looking thing. I've been through all the looks. I've got some very embarrassing photos.

PB: What kind of car do you drive?

Dido: BMW convertible. Very nice, the old one. It's a '91, a more boxy style. I love my car. It's got an amazing stereo. That's what makes me happy.

PB: What do you crank up on the stereo in your car?

Dido: The Q-Tips album. The Dr. Dre album, I love. I listen to quite a lot of dance music.

PB: Are you a good driver?

Dido: Well, I think I'm all right. I haven't had an accident...touch wood...but I drive a bit like a cab driver. Because I've been driving around London so much now that I drive that sort of nipping in between people and probably really annoying people. But...whatever.

PB: Did you drive at all in the States?

Dido: Um, yeah. [Laughs] That was a disaster. I've never driven on the right-hand side, right. So I decided to start in LA in my manager's Mercedes. He was just absolutely terrified. He kept jumping out of his seat. 'Cause I just couldn't quite gauge where the pavement was. So I was scraping things all the way to the studio, but it was fun....

PB: For you.

Dido: For me. It wasn't my car. [Laughs]

PB: What music do you put on when you're in a romantic mood?

Dido: Probably something completely inappropriate. Some horrible hip-hop thing. Or something mellow, like Massive Attack, or Portishead. Something low-key.

PB: What music would you listen to when you've had a bad breakup?

Dido: Nirvana, without a doubt. Just whack it on and get really depressed and head-bang. I hate rock music, but I love Nirvana.

PB: Good for going through a breakup.

Dido: Oh, completely. That's the only thing to listen to if you're breaking up.

PB: You're a Police fan, and now you'll be opening for Sting....

Dido: I know. I don't think he's realized the crazed fan who's found her way on to the support bill....

PB: Uh oh, you're like the "Stan" to Sting?

Dido: [Laughs] Finally, my stalking nightmare.

PB: So that Eminem song was really about you?

Dido: Exactly. How did you know?... I love what Sting does. I flew to Ireland just to see a show of his recently. So it's like a little dream come true.

PB: What would you say is the best thing about men?

Dido: Um.... [laughs]

PB: Men everywhere are gonna be upset at the long delay in answering....

Dido: Well, no, it's just there's so many great things about men, it's funny, I just can't think of one. I mean, I can think of one, but I'm not gonna say that one.

PB: Or maybe it would be easier. What's the worst thing?

Dido: Oh, there's loads of things. What's the worst thing about men? Foot rot.

Photo Credit: Frank Ockenfels

PB: What? You know, I won't go into that any further....

Dido: No, I'm joking. It's the band's always paranoid when we hire new people. They're like, "Check if they've got foot rot."

PB: And what don't men understand about women?

Dido: That they don't actually enjoy cleaning....

PB: One of the staples of your songs is romance on the rocks. Do you think if men and women ever learned to get along, that would be the end of singer/songwriters?

Dido: Nah, they'll never learn to get along. [Laughs] I think love and relationships are used as a euphemism for all sorts of things as well. Like Thank You is not necessarily about something specific, it's just about there being one thing in your life that's OK. Doesn't have to be a relationship. It can be your dog. I mean, that song could be about my dog, it's just people take it to be about a guy.

PB: Do you have a dog?

Dido: No, but if I did, that song would be for my dog. [Squeaks with laughter]

PB: What would its name be?

Dido: I don't know...maybe Fido. We could be a little team together.

Photo Credit: Frank Ockenfels