After being based in Mexico City for the past 11 years and performing in Latin America, Russell "felt that he was losing his professional identity and also being subtly pressured into becoming a citizen of Mexico." Moreover, he believed that "you haven't got the freedom in Mexico that you've got here U.S.A.. You wouldn't dare say anything against the government of Mexico, or you're found in an alley the next day, or you're thrown out of the country. You haven't got that freedom. In this country you can do everything you want; in fact, a little too much , you know?"