There is a great deal of happiness in the voice of Melissa Etheridge. With two and a half decades in the music industry and over 20 years as an out lesbian and activist, life is good. Currently on tour, recently married and weeks away from releasing her first independent album This Is M.E., there is a lot for Etheridge to be excited about.

On May 31st of this year, just two days after they both turned 53 (on the same day), Etheridge and partner Linda Wallem tied the knot in California.

"That was really special," she says. "It is really something to really be able to look at my partner and say to her you are my wife. I married you! I went to the courthouse and signed those papers, lifted my hand and said I swear; you’re it. I really got married and it’s legit. There is really something powerful in that. I think it is worth all of the trouble we have had for the last two decades."

Etheridge had planned to marry then-partner Tammy Michaels in 2008 until Proposition 8 banned gay marriage (the couple separated in 2010). Having come out in 1993, for two decades Etheridge participated in the fight for equality and, in her heart, always believed that someday she would have the right to get married.

"In the early ’90s I started thinking this is something I want," she describes. "At first we were anti-establishment. Especially us lesbians were all like ew; marriage is animal husbandry. I am not going to belong to anybody! At some point we realized that to join the fabric of our society it is a right to join with someone, and create a family, and have a marriage of two people that create this household. That is the backbone of our society, and to truly come out and be that is so important. When I finally started to see that 15 or 20 years ago I said wait a minute – this is worth fighting for and important. It was weird, I couldn’t imagine doing it, but that I might someday get married."

Etheridge is also a mom to teenagers Bailey Jean and Beckett, fathered by David Crosby, with ex-partner Julie Cypher, and with Miller, in 2006, she had twins – daughter Johnnie Rose and son Miller Steven. Joking early in the interview that I should tell her kids how big of a deal she is, she talked about how touring now differs from when her first kids were young.

"I feel more confidence going away for longer amounts of time [now]," she says. "I share custody with their other moms, and so they are perfectly taking care of them... Especially the teenagers – they have their own lives now. They will travel to see me now if I am playing somewhere really interesting. They are probably not going to visit mom in Toledo. It is a whole new experience. The little ones are almost eight. I feel more freedom being on the road. I don’t worry about being away from my kids as much as I used to. We have such an amazingly strong bond. When I see my 17 year old, who is going to college next year, and see how tight we are, we have a great relationship. All the time away didn’t matter; it was the quality of time, not the quantity."

Etheridge not only has a special bond with her kids, but with other artists as well. In 2012 she toured with Canadian singer Serena Ryder as her opening act. Ryder has many times raved about the experience and the mentorship role that Etheridge took on over the tour. Ryder’s most recent album Harmony has been her most successful to date. The influence Etheridge had can be heard in the music and in Ryder’s outlook on the industry with this album.

"[Ryder] has such a special place in my heart – I love her spirit," Etheridge says. "She came on my bus and I saw how the business had broken her. This business can break your soul, and she was just not up for it. I saw a little bit of myself in that. The best way to learn is to teach, and I decided to do my best with this girl, because she is just a sweetheart. Night after night we would be on the same bus together – it was so amazing. I took her like my little sister, or older daughter, and showed her that yeah make the music that you love. Look at these people out there – they love you. You can do anything. I loved seeing the excitement she had to jump back into music and how much she enjoyed doing it. She influenced me. I have some people that worked on this album that worked on her album as well. We stay in touch, and I love doing whatever I can with her. She is one of my favourite gals."

Her recent stops in Calgary and Edmonton on a solo tour featured local singer-songwriter Joe Nolan. Giving back to new artists is a way of paying it forward for Etheridge.

"I know that Bonnie Raitt helped me out when I started out. She really put a hand on my shoulder and said it’s going to be ok. Bruce Springsteen was really sweet like that. I realize how I looked up to them, and I see these artists looking at me like I used to look at Bruce and Bonnie. It is a great feeling. Supporting other artists is really important."

This tour comes ahead of the release of This Is M.E. Touring in advance allows her to promote the album (she performed two songs during the concert) and generate advance sales (a download code along with an autographed poster was available for purchase after the show). The industry has changed how to market an album.

"This is an independent record," Etheridge says. "This is the first time I have owned my own record. I am not on Island Records - This is M.E. Records distributed by Caroline. So I am going to get all the money on the back end, but there is no up front money. So where you used to have promotional support, I am combining it and tour, so I am making money and do promotion while I am touring, so it is not out of pocket. So this is the business model. It comes out September 30th. Brand new songs, brand new me. It is my record company now. Brand new collaborations. Some of the best writing and melodies and powerful songs. I am crazy about this album right now. There is a freedom now. If it is crap, it is my responsibility, but I love this crap right now and think it is great. No label telling me what to do and how to do it. It is a great feeling."

Etheridge performed at World Pride in Toronto in June.

"It was awesome. To go to a city that was celebrating being gay all around the world in Toronto – I have never seen such a beautiful open door and wonderful experience in Nathan Phillips Square. It was awesome. Serena got up and sang "Bring Me Some Water" there; that was fun."

While Etheridge remains proud as an out lesbian she embodies much more: a mom; a breast cancer survivor; an artist. For years, any reviews of albums or concerts or interviews would make a point of referring to her as a ‘lesbian singer-songwriter’ or ‘gay artist’. Now she is simply referred to as Melissa Etheridge, without the labels.

"It is beautiful," she states. "We are almost tired of talking about it. It has been up front for almost 21 years now. I have answered all the questions. Mostly people say how do you feel about how far we have come? That’s about it. I love that it is not the priority to talk about anymore."

Her September 2nd show at the Jubilee Auditorium featured an audience ranging from straight couples to gay and lesbian fans of many different ages.

"It really is wonderful and important to me," she says on her diverse following. "When a straight person – man or woman – shows up and wonders if it is going to be a big gay thing it’s like no! That is part of it, but it is not the focus at all. We are just talking about love, relationships, music and rock ’n roll. There is not a limit to the sexuality. I have so many different types of fans. I love straight girls, the couples, the guys that come out. I like all kinds of folks that come to see me."

As Etheridge enters a new phase of her career as an independent artist she shows no signs of slowing down.

"My biggest hope is to be able to stay in the present and not get so caught up in the future," she says. "I used to project things out and then not pay attention to what was happening in the moment. So now I want to be so happy and delighted with what I am doing in the moment – right now – and then be able to do that for a really long time. Twenty, thirty, fourty years that would be awesome. I could see myself at 93 strumming Come To My Window."