I want to sing like Aretha Franklin. Before her I wanted the technical ability of Ella Fitzgerald.

I've seen so much. And I've heard so many great performers. There are performers now that couldn't work back in the days when I came along.

A little nepotism never hurt nobody, honey. If you got it, use it. Press on with it. Remind them of it.

Don't be afraid to feel as angry or as loving as you can, because when you feel nothing, it's just death.

I was unique in that I was a kind of black that white people could accept. I was their daydream. I had the worst kind of acceptance because it was never for how great I was or what I contributed. It was because of the way I looked.

It's so nice to get flowers while you can still smell the fragrance.

Nobody black or white who really believes in democracy can stand aside now; everybody's got to stand up and be counted.