Being Black and poor is, I think, radically different from being anything else and poor. Poor, to most Blacks, is a state of mind. Those who accept it are poor; those who struggle are middle class.

Deal with yourself as a individual, worthy of respect and make everyone else deal with you the same way.

She knows who she is, because she knows who she isn't.

Mistakes are a fact of life. It is the response to the error that counts.

The only way you can grow is to let yourself make mistakes and create contradictions. As we learn new things, some of our old attitudes will change.

We are strong enough to stand tall tearlessly, we are brave enough to bend to cry, and we are sad enough to know that we must laugh again.

We have a world to conquer...one person at a time...starting with ourselves.

I want to be clear about this. If you wrote from experience, you'd get maybe one book, maybe three poems. Writers write from empathy.

We love because it's the only true adventure.

You must be unintimidated by your own thoughts.

Once you know who you are, you don't have to worry anymore.

You never know what’s going to be in the garden in June when you’re looking at it in January.

The pain of being in the stress and anxiety of control and fear must reach a point where you don’t want to feel it anymore and then you are ready to truly surrender and let go.

When I write a song, I see a tunnel, and then the chorus is an open space, or the bassline is doing this shape. I see songs as a more of a geometric, spacial experience.

There's good and bad everywhere in any aspect in life. The only people who we can't really trust are politicians. Because those guys lie to everybody and constantly.

I don't subscribe to the theory that all politicians are crap. I think the 'cool people' often take that position.

America has a long and rich tradition of generosity that began with simple acts of neighbor helping neighbor.

It is unmistakable madness to live in poverty only to die rich.

I'm halfway intelligent. I'll figure something out.

I prefer sayings over jokes.

It's almost an addiction that some people have to what I call the perfection that Hollywood presents of successful, beautiful, fun-loving people.