Gregg Gillis, the one and only member of Girl Talk, isn't a girl, a fact obscenely apparent at many of his live performances. The laptop maestro has no qualms revealing himself on stage, and fortunately, the same is true of his interviews. Metromix chatted with Gillis about lawsuits, pop music and his laptop-generated music, which samples from a dizzying array of sources.

Your 2006 album "Night Ripper" was lauded as "violently joyous" by Pitchfork, among other mixed accolades. Did you ever think you'd be famous for your laptop-created, genre-mixing music?
No. Before, I was performing for a cult following of 16 to 20 people in each major city at small shows. The success of the album has been crazy.

So, why pop music?
I've always been a pop enthusiast, even when I was 15 and getting into bands like Nirvana. In my twenties, I slowly grew into exclusively listening to pop. When I want to hear music, I turn on the radio.

Is there a sense of camaraderie or rivalry or both between you and Dan Deacon, who you'll be touring with this fall?
I'd say camaraderie. We come from the same strange world of playing our mixes and music to small groups of people, then being thrown into this mass audience all of a sudden. We were sort of clueless and happy playing to crowds of 10 to 20 people. Guys like us have gotten recognized from a few well-read articles like the ones on Pitchfork. Dan Deacon puts on an incredible show. I had the chance to play a few times with him, and I have to say I'm a little intimidated. But, I'm really looking forward to it.

You've graced the pages of Newsweek by the age of 25. Are you prepped for a lawsuit for sampling others' music without permission?
[laughs] Well, I think that article helped our case. It's cool to know I have a congressman on my side now. Congressman [Mike] Doyle said some pretty flattering things in support of my position in terms of copyright issues. But, yeah, for a while there, my label and I were like, "Should we be doing these big interviews? Is it like asking for a lawsuit?" Then when Rolling Stone wanted to do an interview and it was all set up, we were just like, "Well, here we go."

Where'd you get the name Girl Talk?
It was kind of a combination of things, partly based on lyrics from Tad [a Seattle band from the grunge era] and partly because I wanted to be different. A lot of the laptop mixers at the time I started had these really cryptic names that were like made up words. I wanted something goofy that would standout. I didn't realize at the time that it was going to be my job one day. [laughs]

Do you have any groupies or creepy super fans?
I have way more than I used to. I actually give autographs after shows now, which is funny to me because I'm like a celebrity nerd myself. It's strange to be on the other end of that. I have a few obsessive MySpace friends, but I probably do more to encourage them because I always write back. I remember sending demo tapes out to labels and feeling rejected because they acted like they were too busy and important to get back to me. I'm really busy, but I think it's important to write to people.

Your earlier releases were looser and a bit more experimental. Your newer releases, like "Night Ripper," are tighter and arguably more accessible. Was that intentional, or just a matter of getting better equipment and sharper mixing skills?
It's a bit of both, really. I've gotten a lot better skill-wise, without really upgrading equipment. I think—because there's a two-year gap between albums—my musical tastes have changed. When you think about the difference between what you like when you're a teenager and what you like when you're 24…that's just a period in your life when you cycle through a lot and are exposed to a lot of different experiences and musical styles.

What are you looking forward to mixing on your next album that you haven't used before?
These days, I've been using a lot of a cappella pieces stripped from rap and hip-hop, which are a lot easier to find now than they used to be. But in general, hip-hop like "Lip Gloss" [and] the new Crime Mob is what I've been into. Also, I still just use random tracks. Like when you called I was playing around with some AC/DC. It might never end up anywhere, but you never know.