Something that I think extends to a lot of African cultures is that the line between performer and audience is blurry. My mom would lead the wedding song regularly, and she isn't a professional singer. Even as an audience member, you're expected to clap and sing the response to the lead.
Everyone's talking about how no one is buying records any more, but to me it's quite logical. In the 1990s, music was so hardcore-marketed to a certain group of people that I think a lot of kids felt taken advantage of.
I think I have a pattern of nice and lovely and then dark and twisted.
There is a difference between a voyeur and a tender witness. Maybe I think the audience is more of a tender witness than a voyeur, which has a shady undertone.
I think the heartbreak of September 11 - America's grief not only over the loss of life but also the loss of our own innocence - has expanded us as people because it has tenderized our hearts. On a psychological level, the American people have matured as a result of that awful day.
I think it's possible to have a conservative serve in a cardinal position, a subcommittee chair position, and be very effective.
I think my sound is post-Internet.
When I'm writing the text for a book like 'Little White Rabbit,' I read it aloud, alone, in my studio, again and again and again - because the rhythm has to be exactly right. After I get my manuscript to the point where I think it is perfect, I begin to think about what I want the art to look like.
I think that Americans find the Australian humour and the energy of Australians very refreshing - we are quite self-deprecating, we're light-hearted and can have a laugh.
I think, basically, I am an actor. Sometimes I'm an actor who's writing and sometimes an actor who's directing, but I think if I'm forced to fill out a form for my tax return, 'actor' is the first thing I write down.
There is no community service in 'Seinfeld.' But rather than lauding that, I think it shows the insane banality of it.
I think that fear comes about when there's things in the world that we want to change, things we're scared or angry about, and we can't change them, and so we become fearful; we develop anxiety.
Yeah, I think the common denominator - and this is probably going to sound like Acting 101 - but the common denominator is belief in the character in the moment.
I think art is a consolation regardless of its content. It has the power to move and make you feel like you're not.
Sure, I've felt racism. I think everybody has prejudice. When I was growing up, the dark Mexican kids weren't allowed in the public swimming pool in Dallas. My light-skinned friend got in, and he laughed at us. It didn't seem like a big deal, because we didn't know any different. So I never ran into anything that actually scarred me.
I think any time someone's dreams are crushed, there's the people who can fight to still try and fulfill those dreams and then there's the people who just give up.
There are many guys out there who look like me - you know, brunettes with long hair. There are thousands. But I think the difference is that I am a real polo player, who does endorsements for Ralph Lauren on the side, and I've always looked at it that way.
I think my books talk about kids learning to like and respect themselves and each other. You can't write a message book; you just tell the best story you know how to tell.
To me, country music's about life. It's about Monday through Friday. It's the blue-collar, 40-hour week, songs about life. It used to have more of a sound, but I think the heart of that's still the same. It's still American music.
I think my first album was a gift for my birthday and a Faith Hill album; I loved her.
You always like to learn from people as a young actor. I think every young actor says that, but it's true.
I think one of the reasons I've done so much period work is because I feel so depressed by how society chooses to represent women in contemporary work.
Some artists will tell you that's all they want to do is write their own music, and that's great, but George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Garth Brooks, they didn't write everything they recorded, and they've had major, major careers. I think it's all about the best song.
I think people are realizing that engineering and science are extremely good degrees to get and you'll be very highly paid once you've got them.
I think of 'The Hobbit' as more like a boy's own film, like those annuals from the 1930s and 1940s.
Failures are much more dramatic than successes, and people like drama. I think this is why automobile races draw such crowds. People expect spectacular crashes, which we tend to find more interesting than cars just racing around the track. The same is true of bridges, buildings, or any structure or machine.
I think that I am a walking testimony to you can have scars. You can go through turbulent times and still have victory in your life.
I think of myself now as a writer, although I wouldn't go as far as to say 'novelist' because that sounds like a Victorian person.
Well, I don't know. It's long, it's longer than both of the other books put together, so it's more ambitious. I think I get under the skin of the people a lot more than in the other books.
I think of myself as a very lazy writer, though other people see it differently.
I think in the darkest moments, we need a break.
I think that if you run a big company, you've got to, four or five times a year, just say, 'Hey team, look, here's where we're going.' If you do it 10 times, nobody wants to work for you. If you do it zero times, you have anarchy.
I think you have to be careful with spices. Kids' palates can be very delicate, and they might not like things overspiced. In my cookbooks for kids, I do a milder version of my signature spice blend, Emeril's Essence, called Baby Bam, which has no cayenne pepper.
I think the commercial world is a lateral step from features. Some people see it as a step down, but I've never understood that.
I'm not sure what I think about current fashion, though. A few years ago, I would have said it's really, really bad and you hardly ever see anybody looking good. There must be some very good designers in the world.
I used to think 40 was old. Now I think, 'Hey, 40's hot!'
