Flea

“I did record a bunch of stuff, but the thing that usually stops me from doing that is that I'm a terrible singer. I made a bunch of instrumental music, and it feels really good, but just as a singer, I'm not good.”

“We always write way more than we put on a record. We always write a lot-lot.”

“We were these arty punks from Hollywood. I considered myself an intellectual.”

“I love entertaining people, I love playing music, and I love rocking like an animal. But at a certain point, you're playing gig after gig after gig, in town after town after town, and you're lying down, staring at another hotel-room ceiling, and it's like, 'I want to be home. I'm a dad. I've got kids.'”

“Music is like the genius of humankind, universal... People who have never really taken the time to get into music, their lives are a lot smaller. Kids deserve the richness and dimension of it in their lives.”

“I feel creatively vibrant. I have some great friends; I feel like I'm capable of giving a lot to the world. And ultimately, that's what I really care about, is just giving.”

“The quality of instruction is very high at the Silverlake Conservatory of Music. It's not about being a rock star. It's about the fundamentals of music, theory and technique on a particular instrument, and playing in an ensemble or private setting.”

“The last thing that should happen is funding cut for education; it should be increased. We need to put more money towards education, and anything else is abusive.”

“Water is my main state. If I time before I run - like, to digest, like, a good hour and a half or so to digest, I'll eat oatmeal. but I'm a vegetarian for the most part, so in general, I just eat grains and vegetables and fruit.”

“I just lucked into this weird, little obscure cameoesque film career. I just love being a part of film history.”

“Later in high school, I met Hillel Slovak, who was the original guitar player of the Chili Peppers, and we became really close. We had a band, and we didn't like the bass player, so I started playing bass, and I got a bass two weeks later.”

“With acting, I always feel conscious of what I'm doing.”

“I wanted to play in a band, and I wanted to do music for a living, and that's what I dedicated my life to.”

“When something comes up, and it's interesting, and I have the time, I'll do it.”

“I've always kind of been an in-the-moment kind of person. I don't think that far in advance or have any idea what's around the next corner.”

“As a musician I'm about expressing what's inside, and I think everyone has a song in them that they need to get out, whatever their gig is.”

“The most important thing to me with any politician is that they don't start wars, but education is a big part of that, too, because educated people are less likely to do stupid, violent things.”

“I exercise; I have a big career. I'm a parent, and I run a music school.”

“About 13-14 years ago, I went back to my alma mater, Fairfax High School, and ran into the music teacher. She invited me to come speak to the kids about the viability of a music career. When I went into the room where I used to play every day in a big orchestra, they had nothing!”

“I got my love of jazz from my stepfather, who was a jazz musician.”