Growing up in Cleveland, I learned about singing from my mother, who had once sung professionally and who admired Mahalia Jackson and Aretha Franklin.

I don't try to project any image at all, other than the person that I am.

Why do babies starve /When there's enough food to feed the world /Why when there's so many of us /Are there people still alone

I meet people in my daily life, people who seem to experience some change and some growth on a personal level, and that gives me hope.

Men are able to sustain a career into their 50s and 60s and still present themselves as sex symbols. With women, on the other hand, people say, 'Why doesn't she retire?'

I dressed up as a veterinarian for a Halloween costume party. I had the lab coat. I got a couple of stuffed animals for patients and put bandages on them.

I got a plan to get out of here, I've been working at a convenient store.