No one has to give you permission to make music or make art.

There are always going to be people that are judgmental that are going to say, 'Well, he was an actor first, so he doesn't have the right to be a musician,' or, 'I know him as this, so therefore I will never accept him as that.' I can't change those people. I can only be myself. And I can only keep making art. I can only do the best that I can. I am not going to spend my life trying to silence the critics. I'm going to do what I'm passionate about and follow my dreams.

It's okay to stand on your own two feet and to be different, to be yourself.

Some people believe in God. I believe in music. Some people pray. I turn up the radio.

It's not only music. It's not only art. It's a community. It's a sense of having a place to belong.

The truth is, that I feel alone most of the time. I stopped believing in happiness, but I know that music makes me feel good.

I always love to put hidden messages in my music videos, because I know there are people like me who, when they watch something, are really active, involved participants. I'm not usually a really passive listener or observer. So I do put those messages in there for people who spend a great deal of time [looking for them].