It's as simple as finding something on the street and then writing a jingle. If I'm driving and I have my turn signal on and it's rhythmic, maybe I just write a song to that.

May your past be the sound of your feet upon the ground.

I kind of like being depressed.

There’s always some level of optimism in every single song.

It takes a lot to still believe in people.

Running in Central Park is my favorite thing to wake up and do. I have my own specific path that I have to run every single time. There's a little bit of OCD involved, but I love it.

I don't play an instrument - I just write in my head, and I usually hear fully formed songs. 'We Are Young' turned out so much like it was in my head. But it also exceeded all my expectations.

But as long as you're creating the art you want to create, if people start liking you, you shouldn't have to apologize. You want your stuff to be heard by as many people as possible.

If I wasn't a musician I'd probably be like a meth addict.

I try and get about eight hours of sleep every single night. And I like to think that I drink more water than anyone, ever.

I don't want to be known for anything other than writing songs.

No man was ever wise by chance

Civility must be a natural thing

Be who you are

Life is full of screwups, " he said, chucking another paper at the split-level before taking the corner. "You're supposed to fail sometimes. It's a required part of the human existence.

Oh yes. You’ve done a marvelous job of succeeding at failure.

I still love the whole history of jazz. The old things sound better than ever.

Islamic law is clearly against terrorism, against any kind of deliberate killing of civilians or similar 'collateral damage.'

A scientist is happy, not in resting on his attainments but in the steady acquisition of fresh knowledge.

You know you're old when the president is younger than you.

As a little kid, I suppose I was a little weird.