The Majestic Theater in 1990. That was one of my first real shows where I had 300 to 400 people there.
I just try to do as good job with the material as I can and play some jazz as well, some improvised music, and do that every night. Just see where it goes.
The Lusitania is a monument to this optimism, to the hubris of the era. I love that, because where there is hubris, there is tragedy.
No matter where I travel, I make sure to carry a Vaseline body lotion with me to keep my skin well moisturised all the time.
Technology and the Internet are not just changing politics here in the U.S. It's also happening abroad. In the Philippines, where I grew up, grassroots organizers used text messaging to help overthrow a president.
I've dealt with losing close ones before, and I've been around friends that have lost friends at a young age. I think it's important to think about - not necessarily death, but about life and think about where you're going and how you want to be remembered and the legacy you want to leave.
From where the sun now stands I will fight no more.
So now, if we don't fund the physical sciences, where will the Next Big Thing come from?
It's just madness. First email. Then instant message. Then MySpace. Then Facebook. Then LinkedIn. Then Twitter. It's not enough anymore to 'Just do it.' Now we have to tell everyone we are doing it, when we are doing it, where we are doing it and why we are doing it.
I think if you grow up in a culture where the army is out on the street sighting you with rifles, it has to have some kind of psychological impact.
The world that I am coming from, hip-hop, is so regurgitated and repetitive that some people are used to that and they don't want change, they don't like change. And I get that, that's cool. Luckily for me, I'm confident in myself as an artist where I can do what I want, and as long as I'm cool with it, I'm cool with it.
I always sort of swooned at the sight of the classic barn structures in central and northern Minnesota, where everything seemed rustic and weathered and made to age gracefully.
When I was a child, the temptation to sin was always a romantic option. This romantic option led me to the cinema, a place where sin was welcome.
I do value the respect I get from my contemporaries, but to have Oasis cover my song, to have Puff Daddy cover a song, to have Goldie come along to my gigs - that's where my ego is at. To have my fellow musicians like what I do, that's very cool.
If you're black and have leukemia, the chances of finding a donor are drastically reduced. I added my name to the register, and lo and behold, six months later, I was asked to donate. I had a week of 'conditioning' where I had to take these pills and injections to create new stem cells in my body.
Smell is a very animal thing, almost reptilian, where the more cerebral things like reading less so.
Daleks scared the hell out of me, to the point where I wouldn't go round to another boy's house because he had Dalek wallpaper in his bedroom.
It was important for me to understand who I am and where I came from. To get a hold on why I do certain things.
I was with the CIA for only three years. I worked in the Directorate of Operations, which is now called the National Clandestine Service. It's the part of the organization where the spies live. I didn't have much experience beyond the training.
My views on equality are pretty obvious. I mean, I did play a highly complex lesbian techno DJ on TV, but I know it's not always easy to come out and tell the world where you stand.
Atlanta's my musical home. It really was the place where I really came alive.
The heart has a yearning for the unknown, a longing to penetrate the deep shadow and the winding glade, where, as it seems, no human foot has been.
If the crisis lasts moments, rapid action is critical. But if it's simply the beginning of a broader issue, especially one where the root cause isn't known yet, the worst thing a leader can do is act immediately.
I love performing in front of people, no matter where they come from or what language they speak.
If you look at where innovation - defined as ideas, not as commercial product - tends to live, the university system is remarkably innovative.
I still remember the first gig where I got people going, it was Rascals in New Jersey, and the place was packed. I was scared. People were expecting me to be funny. I gotta be honest, every time I walk into a club, it's that same fear.
I work in Britain, where women are allowed to look their age.
I love the smell of a theater. The old rooms and the carpet and all that stuff. I love to tell stories. Even before I was doing music, I saw myself as a director. So most of my songs come in a play form, you know, where there are characters and stories, so I like to go beyond just the song sometimes.
I live in L.A., where every coffee shop is filled with scriptwriters, producers and directors.
The 4th Congressional is a rural district where people are proud to put in an honest day's work. We believe in God and family, and that success is created by working hard every day. We don't want the government interfering in our lives or telling us what to do.
I've had a carry permit for 30 years, and I would say off and on in different instances where I have, you know, felt it was appropriate, I would carry the weapon on myself.
My heart is in independent film-making. For me, it's where the fun, gritty storytelling is being told.
For me, as I suspect for most people, there comes a point where you have enough. If you've got £20 million, why keep going until you've got £100 million or £1,000 million? Does anyone need another vast yacht or private jet or a house full of gold?
There's one point where I play the piano upside down. When I first did that, I hit my head and it really hurt. But people were laughing, so we've kept it in ever since. I probably have severe brain damage.
We're seeing a reaction - and people taking to the streets with pots and pans - in areas where the independence movement isn't supposed to exist. People have to choose between one model and another. Everyone in Catalonia has realised that not taking part means ratifying the politics of repression of the Spanish government.
Is there a way to design a room in my house where I float around? I would quite enjoy that. It's nuts.
