Blondie’s Debbie Harry on the downside of turning 80: ‘Everyone’s gone already’

Blondie‘s Debbie Harry will turn 80 in July. So, how does she feel about celebrating such a milestone birthday?

“I don’t walk around thinking every minute, oh my God, I’m going be 80 — but that’s sort of how I feel,” she tells the U.K. paper The Times. “My mother used to say in her head she was 25 and I’m the same. But thinking about it all the time could be your downfall.”

“And I don’t really want the same kind of life I did when I was younger. I’ve done that!” she says. “That’s the beauty of aging — you know what it’s about. You have it in your heart and soul and your memory bank … or does that sound like an excuse? Should I go out and party every night?”

Harry does plan to celebrate her big day but she says it may be a little bittersweet.

“I’m going to have a whopping great party with everyone there,” she says. “Though one of the bad things about aging is everyone’s gone already.”

“In the 1980s, or maybe 1990s, there was a show at CBGB’s gallery. I went around the room and 50 [percent] of the musicians in the photos were gone and that was years ago,” she says. “It’s what they call diminishing returns.”

But just because she’ll be 80 doesn’t mean Harry will slow down. In fact, Blondie’s Chris Stein has shared that the band is in the studio, with a new album expected this year.