Believe in yourself when nobody else does.

I started speaking about what I was dealing with through my music, and 4 million women responded and said, 'Us too, Mary.' And I didn't know that everyone was hurting like I was hurting. I had no idea.

I like French fries; I like mashed. I love potatoes.

God comes first - if I don't love him, I can't love anybody, and if I can't love me I can't love nobody.

As far as men go, they never gave me a chance to be me; they were always scared that somebody was going to take me.

You either learn from your experiences or go back and do the same thing, and I learned from my experiences.

The fact is that everyone at the labels wants to do what everyone else is doing. You have to look like her; you have to be like her; you have to sing like her, and no one can express themselves. I look at Rihanna and I am so proud of her. She speaks loudly! You have to stand up and clap. She expresses herself through fashion. She actually can sing. And her songs mean something, even to me, you know?