I don't like rap music at all. I don't think it's music. It's just a beat and rapping.

You've got to learn to leave the table When love's no longer being served".

I tell you what freedom is to me: no fear.

What kept me sane was knowing that things would change, and it was a question of keeping myself together until they did.

You can't help it. An artist's duty, as far as I'm concerned, is to reflect the times.

Life is short. People are not easy to know. They're not easy to know, so if you don't tell them how you feel, you're not going to get anywhere, I feel.

You have to learn to get up from the table when love is not being served.

Talent is a burden not a joy. I am not of this planet. I do not come from you. I am not like you.

How do you explain what it feels like to get on the stage and make poetry that you know sinks into the hearts and souls of people who are unable to express it

There's no excuse for the young people not knowing who the heroes and heroines are or were.

Slavery has never been abolished from America's way of thinking.

There are three things against which the wise man guards: lust when young, quarrels when strong, and covetousness when old.

Dream big; at least you will have the joy of reaching for the stars instead of living in a box filled with unopened gifts.

The most common form of terrorism in the U.S.A. is that carried on by bulldozers and chain saws.

Dirt is matter in the wrong place.

Patriotism is the principle that will justify the training of wholesale murderers.

Success is not easy and I think everyone should know that hard work and perseverance and being open to giving back are so much more powerful than stepping all over people to get to the top.

I've never had a single moment of depression, because I know my cause will triumph.

Butterflies...flowers that fly and all but sing.

Socks is the White House cat. But did you know there is also a White House dog?

You can't assume the responsibility for everything you do or don't do.