I like to shop, but I don't like to go out to dances.

My mother always told me, even if a song has been done a thousand times, you can still bring something of your own to it. I'd like to think I did that.

I am so happy that I am alive and can walk.

You can't fake this music. You might be a great singer or a great musician but, in the need, that's got nothing to do with it. It's how you connect to the songs and to the history behind them.

I don't care who's playing. Even if it's my favorite artist, I'm probably not gonna go and see him.

Now I can stand up on the stage again like I used to after five years of sitting down while I sang.

When Malcolm X was assassinated I was working at the Apollo. They brought his body to the Unity Funeral Home, which was around the corner.