I wasn't the kind of person that liked waiting for autographs or following them, I just liked to go to the shows, study their records, driving many, many hours to different states to go to concerts.

I'm just as white as I am black, and I'm just as Russian Jew as I am West Indian.

People see my photos and think I labor over my image and I'm this cool, brooding artist. But I'm just having fun with it.

I used to do plays and some television commercials when I was younger. I guess my mom's being an actress got me interested in that, but music definitely took its place.

What motivates it is life. Life is everything. Life influences my music and brings it forth. Life is always changing, so I'm always hearing new music.

Beyond [Barack Obama] having made history as the first African-American president, I hope that he gets re-elected for what he does while in office, not for his skin color. I certainly believe he has the capacity.

A lot of my songs deal with spirituality and God, and I guess if you're in tune with that, you'll read into it.