I have no clue why, but maybe sometimes when there's someone you don't hear from, it's the person you want to hear from the most.

In complete darkness we are all the same, it is only our knowledge and wisdom that separates us, don't let your eyes deceive you.

It is my belief that we all have the need to feel special. It is this need that can bring out the best in us, yet the worst in us.

Bound together by our beliefs, we are like minded individuals, sharing a common vision, pushing toward a world rid of color lines.

Control meant not only taking care of myself but living in a much less protected world. And doing that meant growing a tough skin.

I really don't know anything else because my brothers were famous when I was two years old. So I know nothing else, no other life.

There are artists, true performers that have come before me who have been a big inspiration to me. I hope I do the same for others.

To cut off the confusion and accept an answer just because it's too scary not to have an answer is a good way to get the wrong answer.

Every body type is different - that's what makes you unique. What makes you special is you, and you are different from the next person.

It has taken me most of my adult life to come to terms with who I am. To do that, I had to break free of attitudes that brought me down.

Recording is more autobiographical than acting. It's me - either how I'm feeling then or once felt at some point in my life. It's all me.

I am the baby in the family, and I always will be. I am actually very happy to have that position. But I still get teased. I don't mind that.

I wanted to be on my own and get out of the house. We were the kind of kids that - we - obeyed our parents. If they said no, you don't ask why.

I was very independent growing up, but there were things that were bothering me that I never told anybody. I would talk to our animals at home.

Touring is very grueling. It's very taxing on the body and living out of your suitcase, going from city to city, night after night. It's a tough job.

I think people really connect with the idea of someone who's gained and lost weight in this very public way, and also someone who's an emotional eater.

The only thing that bothers me is that the girls come up to me and say, "I'm dating your ex-husband." I'm happy that he's dating girls and getting out.

Marvin Gaye is our John Lennon. The longer he's gone, the more young people appreciate his art. 'What's Going On' was a work of genius far ahead of it's time.

I truly felt that was going to be my last tour. So here we are again and I'm saying this will probably be my last tour. That's truly the way I'm looking at it.

I was never pushed into the religion by my mother or anyone else. I made up my own mind when I was old enough. I am not a religious person, but I am spiritual.

I'm convinced that we Black women possess a special indestructible strength that allows us to not only get down, but to get up, to get through, and to get over.

I wanted to be a jockey. I'm serious. First time I got on a horse, I loved it. That's what I wanted to be, but my dad asked me to start performing with my family.

I like to collaborate on my music. The creative process is fun, and you get a lot of ideas from having discussions about it. Ultimately, the final decision is mine.

To have someone to relate to and hopefully enjoy the music and get a positive message out of it, to make the best music that we possibly could, those were the goals.

MTV was completely unaware of it. It was not my intention that it go as far as it did. I apologize to anyone offended - including the audience, MTV, CBS and the NFL.

Everywhere I go, every smile I see, I know you are there smilin' back at me. Dancin' in moonlight, I know you are free 'cause I can see your star shinin' down on me.

My concepts are never bright ideas; they're never notions I think will sell or be trendy or attract new fans. I don't think that way. All I can do is sing from my life.

When you hear bad things about yourself, just put your energies into something else; it's no good crying about it. Just put it into your music - it'll make you stronger.

I can be an emotional eater. Of late, I have been doing that, yes. It started when I was very little. My brothers were gone on tour a lot, and I would miss them so much.

Damita Jo. Jo. That's my middle name. It's let in about the different characters that live within me. They say we have 200 characters that we portray with different people.

There's other things I'd like to do. I probably won't tour for a very, very long time. It's something that you feel inside and that's the way I've been looking at everything.

When we were growing up, all of us kids were vegetarians. No one had asked me to stop eating meat - I just noticed everyone else around me had stopped, so I followed the crew.

Another side to me is this very sexual being. When I look back on my life, it's always been there. It's been there since I was 10 years old, having the imagination that I had.

Self-expression is my goal, I want to be real with my feelings. Singing and dancing and all the joy that goes with performing come from my heart. If I can't feel it, I won't do it.

I can't believe people got so upset at the sight of a single breast! America is so parochial, I may just have to move to Europe where people are more mature about things like that!

I like myself a lot more than I used to. I had a very difficult time in my twenties especially. It was hard for me to look in the mirror and find something that I liked about myself.

I enjoy them both [singing and acting] a great deal. I have a passion for both. Maybe acting just a little bit more because it's more of a challenge for me, while music comes so easily.

You get used to working with one choreographer. You kind of get stuck in that vein and you work your way out of it, picking up someone else's style, their flavor. It takes a bit of time.

A lot of people who start work at a very young age never grow up because they never got that opportunity to be a child, so they hold on to that and still do a lot of childish, silly things.

I've never been one for keeping a journal, so my songs were my journals. They allowed me to express my feelings and let people know what was going on with me. I knew that somebody would relate.

I kinda see everyone as competition. I'm a very competitive person. But I think that's good. Competition is great. And as long as it's friendly and not a malicious thing, then I think it's cool.

There are people that regardless of what it is, if it's something that's stressful, whatever it may be, they don't eat, they lose a lot of weight, a divorce, they get real thin. I'm the opposite.

I feel that when two people are married - not that you have to totally give up your career - you have to spend time with one another, get to know each other more, just share things with each other.

By age seven, I used to comb my hair for performances, just pull my hair up into a bun. Granted, it wasn't a very intricate hairstyle. Still, to be that responsible and disciplined at age seven is unusual.

I study once in a while. But my parents never pushed us into anything. Until we were 18, my mother would make us go with her to Kingdom Hall, and when we turned of age, she let us choose what we wanted to.

I think it's been a little difficult at times for the audience, because they've told me they see me as a family member. So to see your little sister sing about sex... I think they are pretty used to it now.

In 1977, at age ten, I was cast on the TV sitcom 'Good Times.' My character was Penny, an abused child in desperate need of love. I really didn't want to do the show. I didn't want to be away from my family.

We're all driven to premieres or nightclubs and seen the rope separating those who can enter and those who can't. Well, there's also velvet rope we have inside of us, keeping others from knowing our feelings.

We're all driven to premieres or nightclubs and seen the rope separating those who can enter and those who can't. Well, there's also a velvet rope we have inside of us, keeping others from knowing our feelings.

Dreams can become a reality when we possess a vision that is characterized by the willingness to work hard, a desire for excellence, and a belief in our right and our responsiblity to be equal members of society.

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