“I listen to most everything that’s out there because I need to stay aware of what’s happening in the industry.”

The first time I heard a Billie Holiday record, I thought, ‘What’s so great about Billie Holiday?’

I know that my fans want to know who I’m sleeping with, but it’s really none of their business.

If I’m with a man I’m soft and buttery.

It takes a long time to get to be a diva. I mean, you gotta work at it.

I don’t judge people by their sexual orientation or the color of their skin, so I find it really hard to identify someone by saying that they’re a gay person or a black person or a Jewish person.

I don’t care about vacations. I go away and I come back real quick because I like my work. I really like my work to consume me.

I’m not really a songwriter – I’m an interpreter. So in a sense I am an actress first and foremost. I act out the songs, and I lead with my heart.

It has always been, and still is, my intention to build a playground in Central Park.

One thing you cannot control is nature.

My travels led me to where I am today. Sometimes these steps have felt painful, difficult, but led me to greater happiness and opportunities.

When I’m working I actually forget to eat. I don’t eat sweets because I don’t care about them. I have no real secrets. I just realize that as I get older I should stay strong so I exercise more.

My problem is that people have been writing books about me.A lot of things that people write about you are incorrect, but you don’t fight about it.

I was brought up in this part of Detroit that they used to call the ghetto.

People can take your name and write a book about you and they make money off of it. How is the public supposed to know you’re not authorizing that book? As soon as you make a big stink about it it only makes the book sell more.

I have never gotten into the label thing.

Hair has always been important.

I see how the industry and the studios feel it’s important, but I don’t really have a feeling for being in competition.

Telling people that I wanted to make dance music, or be on the radio, they looked at me like I was crazy because there was nothing like that in Lichtenstein when I was getting started. That’s why I went to Germany, because there is industry there.

It has around 45% of all the movie industry and around 75% of all the music.

The crash of 2008 was driven in no small part by unfair practices in the mortgage industry which led to many consumers being trapped in loans they didn’t understand and couldn’t afford.

The comic-book industry today is not what it was back then, unfortunately. Kids are no longer interested in reading comic books.

Bachchan has been in the film industry over 35 years and he is the real king.

In the industry, you do need some ethics – if one film does well, then thousands get work and money comes back to the industry.

Each one of us has his own place in the industry. I’ve been able to prove that you don’t necessarily have to be a Khan to be successful!