“People can hear my songs are coming from something real. I mean what I say; I’m not just writing to impress critics or young girls, or older girls. The way I talk is the way I write a song.”

If I was a billionaire, I’d be smart with my money.

Becoming famous was never what I wanted to do. There’s a lot of things that come with fame – it’s what people in the limelight have to do.

Songwriters, you have to work – you have to wait for residuals. You have to pray that the song’s going to be a hit. And then a year later, you might get a check.

My dad was just the king of finding these little spots for us to stay that we should never have been staying at.

There will never be another Michael Jackson, a huge pop star since (the age of) 7.

When I see your face, there’s not a thing that I would change ’cause you’re are amazing just the way you are.

You pick up some fans and a handful of haters along the way.

I know I’m probably much too late to try and apologize for my mistakes.

I feel it’s my job to continue being a student of music if I want to continue being an artist and a producer of other artists. You have to keep filling your mind with other music. You have to be ahead of the curve.

You know, I just do whatever feels right to me! And so that’s what you’re gonna get!

A grown man should always carry cash, right? I don’t know who told me, but someone told me that a long time ago, and the biggest turnoff is when a guy doesn’t have cash on him.

I just write songs that I strongly believe in and that are coming from inside. There’s no tricks. It’s honesty with big melodies.

Ever since I was a kid, this was all I wanted to do. I’ve wanted to do music. I wanted to sing. It’s all I know.

We all grew up idolizing another musician. That’s how this works. That’s how music is created.

I don’t think anyone ever plans to change line-ups, but it’s something that comes with being in bands. I was in a band once and there were always problems – members come and go – and some of the world’s biggest bands have changed line-ups loads!

You can’t knock on opportunity’s door and not be ready.

Look for intelligence and judgment and, most critically, a capacity to anticipate, to see around corners. Also look for loyalty, integrity, a high energy drive, a balanced ego and the drive to get things done.

I always take criticism as a challenge. It’s the way I’ve always looked at it.

As for myself, I met with as much success as I ever could have wanted. In other words, I was enthusiastically run-down by every critic of the period.

There is probably no hell for authors in the next world – they suffer so much from critics and publishers in this.

A lot of critics object to what I do, but I got into comedy to make people laugh, and I’ve always worked hard.

Abilities wither under criticism; they blossom under encouragement.

Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain – and most fools do. But it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving.

Talk about your own mistakes before criticizing the other person.