In the strange world of celeb-dom, the fact that Saffron bumped into Courtney Love backstage at a Versace fashion show is part of the course. 
"She came in screaming like a crazy woman. She's totally overpowering, but I love that," laughs Saffron. "She gave me some matriarchal rock-chick advice and told me where I was going wrong, but she meant it in a good way. She looks fab and although she's now this big Hollywood star she's still into her music. I thought she was brilliant." 
Saffron laid-back response to encountering Courtney just about sums up the character of this petite pop phenomenom. Although she looks like a scary cross between punk icon Siouxsie Sioux (her idol) and Morticia from The Addams Family she's actually a softly spoken home girl, who likes to have a laugh with her mates - and write great pop songs.  
Not only that, this role model to a new generation of girrrrls with attitude is on a big love vibe. After a number of disastrous love affairs, Saffron's bagged a goodie. She's been seeing Fast, bass-player with the Fun Lovin' Criminals, since January, and it's all hunky dory, she says, grinning like a Cheshire cat. 
"It's a really weird story. I met him when we were touring America last summer. He remembered me from a gig I'd done in New York in 1991 and said he'd got all my records. I thought he was spinning me a line, but he actually has! He bought them all on import." 
When they met, Saffron was in a "terrible relationship". "I know that this sounds crap, but I consider Fast to be my first real boyfiend. I've had a catalogue of disasters, one of them culminating in Drop Dead Gorgeous, so at least I've learned from my mistakes," she says. "But I feel very lucky that I've found a good man."  
The couple started off as friends. "I didn't realise I was in such a bad relationship until I met someone nice," Saffron says. "I'd sit there thinking 'I wish I could meet someone like Fast', and then it all happened." 
So what does she look for in a man? "My boyfriend is so honest and well-mannered, and that's really important," she says. "I don't think girls should stand for less. Women put up with too much crap from men, when they shouldn't have to." 
Now that's girl power for you. But then Saffron has always gone after what she wants. She was born in Nigeria. Her mum is from Hong Kong and her dad is English. She lived in Brighton, studying ballet, until her late teens, when she moved to London to pursue her music career. In the early Nineties she tasted chart success with a dance act called N-Joi, but struck out on her own in 1993. 
"I went to DeConstruction, the record company, ant told them to give me a deal. They said 'Get a band together and we'll see', so I did." 
Republica are songwriter Tim Dorney, who founded Flowered Up; keyboard player Andy Todd, who's worked with Bjork; guitarist Johnny Male and drummer Dave Barborossa, who was with Adam And The Ants back in the Eighties. 
Saffron explains, "They were looking for a singer when I met them. But I didn't want us to be like all the girly dance band rubbish. They agreed and that's how we started." 
Since then, Republica have broken America big time, and have make their mark over here with Ready To Go and Drop Dead Gorgeous, which was used on the soundtrack of Wes Craven's film Scream. 
"Making it in the US was great, but what's important for us is to be in the British charts," Saffron says, "We all live here and have grown up here. It's all very well doing big things in America - but we wanted to be on Top Of The Pops!" 
That doesn't mean to say that Republica aren't getting used for the fame game. Earlier this year they playedat at one of Donatella Versace's fashion shows, after the designer spotted them on TV. 
"She liked us, so she asked us to play a gig at a show and there we were on the catwalk with Naomi and all the other supermodels," laughs Saffron. "I looked at the front row and there was Leonardo DiCaprio, Courtney Love, Prince and The Fugees. I just thought 'Aaaaaaaah!'." 
But it's not just the rich and famous who are taking notice, thanks to Saffron's distinctive hair. "In America, MTV unifies the whole country, so we'd be in truck stops in Kansas City and people eating their burgers would come over and go, 'You're awesome, your music rules!' They've seen us on MTV and recognised my hair." 
Saffron loves the attention. And she's especially proud of the way that their music seems to lift people's spirits. 
"Our music is so up and energetic that we get a great reaction. In America, the audiencs go crazy. We had all these mad girls following us around. They'd get on stage, dance around, then jump into the crowd and crowd surf," she says. "I haven't done it myself, although a couple of the guys have. When you see people having such a great time, it gives you a feeling of power, knowing that you can have such an effect on people." 
There's no danger of that power going to Saffron's head, though. Her sarf London mates are more than happy to put her back in her place if she becomes too big for her boots. 
"I'm very happy to have a group of very close girlfriends. I hang out with them when I can and they come to the gigs and tell me what they think. They definitely keep my feet on the ground," she says. 
And she's excited about showing her mates a good time at the festivals Republica are playing at this summer. 
"It's going to be a great laugh; all our friends are coming in the van," she grins.  "We've always loved going to festivals, and this year it's even better because we are performing at them." 
But there will be one thing missing - and that's Fast. The couple have just spend a week together in Florida, but their schedules mean that they've got to spend a lot of time apart this summer. 
"We have massive transatlantic phone bills," she sighs. "But we've been very lucky considering we're so far apart. We've seen each other every three or four weeks - I don't think I could manage for any longer." 
But then Saffron's not the kind of girl who'll put up whith something she's not happy with, especially as her life is going so well these days. 
"I'm having such a great time at the moment, and although we're working really hard, I'm not complaining," she says firmly. "It could all end tomorrow, but you live for today. And even if it does end tomorrow, we'll still carry on doing it because it's what we want to do. Even if no one wants to listen!"
19Magazine/RedAlert