Funk is fun. And it's also a state of mind, ... But it's all the ramifications of that state of mind. Once you've done the best you can, funk it!

You can rebel against everything adults say. When I want to find out what the new music is, I find out what parents hate.

The words I use too often are X-rated, something an old man like me shouldn't be talking about anyway.

I was at the Apollo Theater all the time, skipping school, and I worked in a barbershop. That's how I started with doo-wop. Now I've come full circle. I did all kinds of music. I used to work on Broadway and Tin Pan Alley.

My ability has always been to walk out on the stage and see the audience and figure out what they wanna hear.

I pick up on styles, way before they get popular, pretty much before young kids do. I see 'em coming.

It's the easiest way to stay in the game: By helping the younger kids, they're gonna preach for you.