I wrote two poems about the '81 uprisings: 'Di Great Insohreckshan' and 'Mekin Histri.' I wrote those two poems from the perspective of those who had taken part in the Brixton riots. The tone of the poem is celebratory because I wanted to capture the mood of exhilaration felt by black people at the time.
I have times when I doubt what I'm doing. When those moments hit, I think about how grateful I am to be able to do what I do every day. It was harder when I started because I didn't see the response, but now I'm out there playing for people and seeing them happy, which makes it all worthwhile.
Nobody ever dared with Frank, because he had such mood swings, and you never knew how he was going to react. But I could tell the minute I saw him that he was going to be in my corner.
I like writing for teenagers because they're not snobs.
An award means a lot to me. It brings happiness along with a kind of fear. It brings fear because the award is the responsibility which audiences have put on us. So a singer winning an award should always try to give best of him to the audiences.
I've been singing since I was 16 because I love it - I wanted to be a singer, not a star. There's a difference between wanting to be famous and wanting to sing well.
As an actress, it appeals to me because I love the idea of playing those in-between moments, the sort of behavioral stuff that one might not normally see.
I think it's a great thing to have failed in life and then pulled yourself up by the boot straps and actually done something, because then you appreciate it more.
I think it would be bizarre to pick somebody to speak at the convention based on their sexual preference, because once you go down that road, why don't you pick a transvestite?
I've got to give my neighbors a bottle of wine or something because I was just screaming into microphones and learning how to play instruments, and it was a lesson in patience for them, I believe.
We are not forgiven because we are good. We are forgiven because Christ bore our sins.
One of the reasons I was so unhappy for years was because I never embraced my emotions and I was trying to stay in control.
When Disney was creating Elsa, they based a lot of her movements on that of a ballerina, which was interesting for me to find out because I actually did ballet years ago. That definitely informed some of the ways I made her walk and move.
Managers in all too many American companies do not achieve the desired results because nobody makes them do it.
There were six kids in our family, and I grew up fast. I had to do a lot of things on my own. I was a rebellious teenager. That's why coming into the film business was good for me because it gave me some discipline. Once I became an actor, I had to grow up a little more.
There was this sausage factory a block away from my childhood apartment. It didn't smell nice, like chorizo or something; it was pretty foul. Just nasty. But that smell reminds me so much of my childhood because every morning when I was going to school, I would smell that.
If you want to write the next great novel, but you think, No, this won't work because no one will buy it or it won't be any good, then you talk yourself out of taking a risk.
It's a good community, country music, because we get the chance to sit down and... me and Tim McGraw spend a lot of time. Me and Kenny Chesney had the opportunity to spend a lot of time together. It's been a lot of great advice through the years.
Could I say that the reason that I am here today, you know, from the mouth of the State Department itself, is: I should not be allowed to travel because I have struggled for years for the independence of the colonial peoples of Africa.
But I have been avoiding talking about what I'm doing now because it's frustrating for people to hear about things that aren't available yet.
Quentin Tarantino is a hip-hop artist. I told him, 'You're hip-hop!' You keep seeing surprises, and a clip here and there, because Quentin is hip-hop. A hip-hop artist will drop a single, leak something over here, and drop something over there 'cause he knows it's hot. He's on the spot with the way he does things.
There are some things that are never out of fashion because they just look good. But if you want classic style these days you have to get it made.
Well, for us, it's always better not to have too many expectations and to just go with the flow because then it's always a big plus no matter what happens.
I don't know, I think the crowds are even more responsive now because the audiences are skewing younger.
Because there is very little honor left in American life, there is a certain built-in tendency to destroy masculinity in American men.
We need a broad government which will make decisions, but not a national unity government, because we are divided from within.
What I'm doing, I prefer to call that jazz, because it is a beautiful word - I love it.
I'm just into having fun, because I went through some bad years that really depressed me and made me angry.
Because I could throw so hard when I got to college, they made me a pitcher. If I had to it all over again, I would have stuck to playing in the outfield. I loved running. I can catch everything in the outfield. I could throw people out from the fence.
I have a boy's body. I would prefer to have more curves because I think that's more beautiful. I would much rather have J. Lo's body than mine.
I always sing Adele in the shower. But everyone should know you never sing an Adele song in public because no one's better than Adele.
As an immigrant, I chose to live in America because it is one of the freest and most vibrant nations in the world. And as an immigrant, I feel an obligation to speak up for immigration policies that will keep America the most economically robust, creative and freedom-loving nation in the world.
I started to work with cotton fabrics. I used cotton because it's easy to work with, to wash, to take care of, to wear if it's warm or cold. It's great. That was the start.
I think fiction is important because it has the power to transport a reader into another life.
Boxing is individual, although there's a team concept because you need a great corner, you need a great trainer, you need a great prep man, you need all of these things, but it's more of a Mano a Mano; it's more you versus me. I miss that time in training camp and Dad and Mom cooking meals. It was one big family.
What I have said to people is that I've lived the American dream, because I have.
