“Whenever a woman would come too close, I would cut her off. Part of that was vindictive – but that was totally subconscious.”

I’d been in love before – I was always in love.

A great song can make a terrible singer sound good, but a good singer – you put a great song on top of that, you’re really in great shape!

You Make Your Mistakes To Learn How To Get To The Good Stuff.

I don’t remember feeling love.

Count Basie practically adopted me at 13. We became closer and closer and I ended up conducting for him and Sinatra.

I’m a great believer in letting lyrics just flow out, wherever they come from.

I started imagining this whole different world. It was a society of musicians, a family I hoped I could belong to one day.

I never felt like I had a mother.

Did you know you would become as successful as you have? Hell, no. But you know what? You were prepared, baby.

China’s got a billion people and a hit record over there is a million records. You know that ain’t right.

A song should have all the color and beauty of every rose.

My dream is to put together a performance of the evolution of black music with Cirque du Soleil . I would also like to do street opera and children’s books. But even as I work toward these things, I want to simplify my life.

My earliest memories are being pinned to a fence with a switchblade.

The process is the most beautiful part.

I found this out over the years, that racism is a thinly veiled disguise over economics and money. It really is.

It’s the attitude about life, man. Looking at the light instead of the dark. Looking at love instead of fear.