Growing up, there was always music around, whether across the street, or on the next-door neighbor's stereo. So, as in life, music is always around, and it helps to heighten any emotion. Music is amazing.

My father who was there in the house, he wasn't at all a role model. And my mother, who was trying to protect me from him as best she could, she took me everywhere with her, which gave me a tremendous amount of sensitivity to the things women go through.

You will always fine jealous people.They're the ones promoting you.

We don't have to wait for people to green light our projects, we can create our own intersections.

There was our house in New Orleans. Two blocks in front of us were these beautiful mansions and two blocks behind us were the ghetto, projects, and that's where I had to go to school, but I would always pattern my life looking forward. It was almost literal.

What I've never wanted to do was allow myself to be put in a box, so I've tried to do a lot of different things so this is a step in trying to do something different so we'll see how it goes. I'm under no illusions that this is slam-dunk. I did the best I could and that's all I can rely on.

My mother wasn't strong like my aunt. She was just very passive.