I love variation in all forms: in painting, in music.

A lot of poets too live on the margins of social acceptance, they certainly aren't in it for the money. William Blake - only his first book was legitimately published.

I didn't get my degree at NYU; I got it later, they gave me an honourary one.

I think of poets as outlaw visionaries in a way.

When I get depressed, or anything, I go 'think of all the music I haven't even heard yet!' So, it's the one thing. Imagine the world without music. Man, just hand me a gun, will you?

If anyone tells you there is only one way, their way, get as far away from them as possible, both physically and philosophically.

It's hard to get lost if you don't know where you're going.

The beauty of life is in small details, not in big events.

Each one of us is a set of shifting molecules, spinning in ecstasy.

The counterculture is always repackaged and made into a product. It's part of America.

I prefer to be subcultural rather than mass-cultural. I'm not interested in hitting the vein of the mainstream.

Music is a holy place, a cathedral so majestic that we can sense the magnificence of the universe.

Love is the first wisdom in life.

The self-righteous scream judgments against others to hide the noise of skeletons dancing in their own closets.

When in doubt, don't.

Emotion brings in the dimension of bonding or tuning in: An experience that touches your heart makes the meaning that much more personal.

You know why Madison Avenue advertising has never done well in Harlem? We're the only ones who know what it means to be Brand X.

For me, a dancer is part of an artist’s entertainment - “backup dancer” isn’t even in my vocabulary.

I balled my hands into tight fists to keep them from wrapping around Mr. I-Know-Everything's superior neck.

Hillary Clinton's negatives are higher than any Democrat who has ever been elected, ever run.

A great deal of talent is lost to the world for want of a little courage.