Art Alexakis

“Being a parent is not just about how you treat your child; it's also about how you treat the other parent. If you treat that person with respect, that's fine, that's the way to go. But if you don't, you're not being the parent you could be.”

“I love Australia! I got a boot thrown at me there.”

“If you can't say it in three minutes, I don't want to know about it.”

“I have my dark side like anybody, you know, depression, anxiety... and I write about gritty, real-life stuff.”

“My frustration has always been that I'm a Christian, but I don't buy into, never have bought into, the belief that Jesus and God are these men who just dictate that this is how you have to live your life or you are going to burn in hell.”

“I lived in Portland for almost 20 years, and that's where my eldest daughter went to college. I missed the sunshine. I grew up in L.A.”

“As a songwriter, I do kind of look at 'Santa Monica' as a thing outside of itself, because it isn't just my song. This is a song a lot of people tell me is a part of their high school or college years. That means a lot to me.”

“My goal is to make my kids as happy as possible.”

“I'm constantly working, even when I'm at home.”

“I try to talk about things I know about. But my characters are more of a combination of people or how I imagine people would feel.”

“A lot of people do not like singer-songwriters, and a lot of people who like them do not like hard rock. It's either-or.”

“I like people who tell stories. I like storytellers. A lot of my songs are misconceived as being auto-biographical when they're not because I write in the first person.”

“Do not trust anybody but yourself. If people want to help you, fine. Put it on paper and understand exactly what every word says.”

“'Santa Monica' was a big song, and I always knew it would be radio friendly. But it's not a defining song for me, though for a lot of people it is.”

“I'm a 'Power of Now' kind of guy, always have been. I don't really hang on to a lot of pictures. I have pictures of my daughters.”

“My favorite drive is Highway 101 in California between Los Angeles and San Luis Obispo. I love the 101; Highway 1 is too windy, and 5 is too boring - the 101 is just right. It's like the Mama Bear of scenic drives.”

“Fatherhood, both times for me, was a choice.”

“I wish I could come home to a life that looks like a TV show. I wish I could see my television family waiting for me, where no one fights and no one screams, no one lies and no one leaves.”

“Success to me is being able to do what I love, make a living at it and to support myself and the ones I love.”

“I've always loved aggressive, hard, noisy, yet melodic bands, and at the same time I've always loved 'Blue' by Joni Mitchell.”