It doesn't cost a thing to smile.

A person's either responsible for themselves or we're all responsible for each other.

It's not fair that people ignore AIDS in Africa because it's Africa. It's not fair.

I have, my whole life, been healing the girl inside, the part of me that struggles about being a female in the world. That's why I write about the things I write about.

The only thing constant in the world is change, that's why today I take life as it comes.

I'm still afraid of things, obviously - we're human. But I like that feeling of being afraid.

I was born in love with music. My mother is a singer, many of my aunts and uncles on my mother's side are musical, my grandparents sang and played blues piano. It's literally in my blood. My mother wrote an original song to teach me the days of the week.