India Arie

“Joe Sample was one of my heroes. I met him at the Curacao Jazz festival, and I fanned out like he was the Beatles!”

“I like being a role model - people have told me that I am a role model for empowered women, but I don't see myself that way.”

“I was scared of failing, and I was scared of succeeding. I just wanted to be in a safe space and not grow too big or be too little.”

“Even when it doesn't look good, it's always good. Even the worst thing, there's always something good that comes out of it. I've learned that.”

“Could a person really make a social contribution through music consciously? I mean, beyond making a person happy to hear the song and more making a social contribution consciously through your music? For me, Stevie Wonder is the paragon of that. And I didn't want to be Stevie Wonder, but I did want to do what he does.”

“By all of your beauty I am so inspired. Your love has baptized me by fire.”

“Neo-soul is really less about a sound than it is about a look, in my opinion.”

“Everybody has their own path. I got mine.”

“When it comes down to the song writing, I'm just very slow - very slow. Because the songs are about my life, so I'm doing emotional work on myself.”

“I am really excited to be partnering with Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula. Aside from being a longtime fan of their products, they're a family business with a strong ethical foundation, and that makes us a great match.”

“I do believe in prophecy.”

“To spread love, healing, peace, and joy is my mission in life - and so I speak up.”

“When I was growing up, I only saw really brown people on 'The Cosby Show,' and they were rich, and their parents were doctors. It wasn't like my home.”

“I've always wanted my music to serve a certain purpose.”

“'Open Door' was a world music project and bilingual. It was in Hebrew and English, and it's great. I do think it's really beautiful. But it's very emotional and very dark - in a good way.”

“I know the things I say go out of my own mouth and into my own ears.”

“If we can just focus our attention where it matters, we can effect change.”

“I feel like I'm always gonna sing and write songs because it's me.”

“I want to always be classy and honest, and I always want to have fun with music, and if I can't really express who I am through my music, then it's not really fun anymore.”

“So many people have been abused. It's not rare; it's a very common human experience, and we survive.”