Everybody was telling me to sit my ass down. Everybody was telling me to get a real job. Everybody was asking me, "What are you doing? You're ruining your life. You're embarrassing your family." That's all I got. So you can't listen to that. You have to listen to yourself.

You can't rush good wine. It has to sit. And when you finally drink it, it's the bomb. It's worth the wait.

The reason everybody is so amazed and enamored with me right now is because I have worked every angle, I have worked every formula, I have worked every equation, I have seen every club, I have seen every performance, I have seen every joke, I have studied, I have done my job. That's why I'm good. It's not because I got up one night and decided I wanted to tell some f - -ing jokes.

I'm not leaving America because it doesn't support me.

The way we value black beauty has changed. I'm single now, but back in the slave days, I would have never been single. I'm 6 feet tall and I'm strong. Look at me, I'm a Mandingo.

I didn't realize the age thing until I got hired and everybody was telling me I was f - -ing old.

People think I'm an overnight success. No. It's just that you all found me overnight.