Basic principles: no matter what, no matter when, no matter who... any man has a chance to sweep any woman off her feet. He just needs the right broom.

The first eight years of schooling was with all white people. So that helped me to understand how white people think. I think that transition is what helped me bridge the gap, because that's what my success has really been about: bridging the gap between the black community and the white community.

I've always been a jokester. The things I got in trouble for, when I was little, was always about making a joke or setting up a prank or being silly when I should be paying attention.

I want the world to be better because I was here.

I believe you need to be educated about what you want to do in life, but I don't believe you actually need college to get you there.

I think for me, as a parent, once my children are thoroughly informed, they can make the decisions that they want to make. The only thing that I demand is a complete comprehension [of the information].

In my mind, I've always been an A-list Hollywood superstar. Y'all just didn't know yet.