There's a video that's been floating around on YouTube where [Baz Luhrmann says], "We were looking for a guy that sounded like a young Stevie Wonder but much more we got a guy that sounded like a younger version of Aretha Franklin. His name's Quindon Tarver." I was just like, "Wow, to be compared to her."

[Baz Luhrmann] is very serious - he wants it done and he wants it done accurately. He was in the studio actually when I recorded "Everybody's Free." I remember meeting him and him being amazed by my voice.

I had to perform in Dallas at the W Hotel. I was with my best friend, and I had walked on in to the area where I was meeting the crew. Then my best friend came in, and he's like, "This girl at the front desk asked, 'Is his name Quindon? I know him, he's that guy from Romeo + Juliet, I'm one of his big fans.'" I was just like, how does she recognize me from then to now? I was wowed by that because here I am 34, it was 20 years ago, and how does she recognize me?

I started singing at the age of 4, at my grandfather's church in McKinney, Texas. It was called Greater Hope Holiness Church. My first solo was "Jesus Loves Me."

[Leonardo DiCaprio] invited me into his dressing room, and then we went into his hotel room where we stayed. We shared caramel popcorn. I think that was the coolest thing, sharing popcorn with this movie star. And then we wrestled! I always share that story with people.

I was on set [Romeo + Juliet] maybe an hour for two days. It was in this big cathedral in Mexico City. I just remember being up there in the balcony, and it was myself up front and there was a choir behind me. In front of me was this rail, like this cement rail, and I was like, "Oh my gosh!" Because I was a kid then, and I'm like, "We're kinda high ... I hope I don't flip over," because I'm very clumsy.

I had met a lady there by the name of Laura Ziffren.She heard that I got signed to Virgin and reached out to my management company. They needed a kid to sing that part in the movie, and she remembered me, and her people reached out to my people, and I went and auditioned, and I got the part [in Romeo + Juliet].