John Quotes

That's the evergreen nature of a great song. They can be resurrected. They can be covered. They can find new relevance due to changing circumstances in history.

If I collaborate with people, ideas...they take interesting turns and twists, and I'm excited for that and that process and excited to see what we come up with.

Marvin Gaye was one of the coolest. I look to him as a style icon and as an artist.

It's important for us to fight for certain changes that need to happen. And one of those issues that I really care about is education. But also another one is incarceration.

In my neighborhood in Springfield, Ohio, there were a lot of young kids. We all played tackle football after school, but I knew very early on that I was not an athlete.

I'm honestly not a great gift giver. I could give better - my girlfriends have always complained about that.

I never went through a period where I didn't want to play music. I've always loved it and it's always been a huge part of my life.

Music business is hard. It's very difficult. And it's not for everyone. Even if you can sing or even if you can write a song, it takes a lot of determination, it takes some kind of thick skin.

My mother, I want her to like my music, but she's not exactly my target audience. So I care more about the fans in general, just making sure they enjoy what I do.

But in my mind I've always been a solo artist- I've just been working with a lot of great people like Kanye and Alicia Keys and Jay-Z.

For me I'm actually doing what I normally do when I do my solo thing and the other thing is actually more new to me.

I have a great band, with very talented players, and we give everything we have every night.

I hear melodies and hooks all day. I've always been that way, since I was a kid.

I was in an a cappella group in school, so it particularly helped me keep my piano chops up.

Some people, you know, should just go to college and do what they do and have a great job and not worry about trying to be famous as a singer. It's not for everyone.

Music wasn't forced on me [in my childhood]. It was something I wanted to do. And ever since, I've never stopped, I've never stopped playing music.

I like helping people achieve their dreams just like people helped me.

I love theater. I think theater, when its done right, is the best, like a religious experience. When it is done badly, it's the worst thing. It's just an incredible experience.

That's the happiest I am, when I'm doing great work.

I think as you mature as an actor things open up to you in a lot of ways, especially if you do work on yourself.

Most of the great directors I've worked with - De Palma, Spike Lee - like rehearsals.

It's not quite the same as other kinds of performing, but I love animation. It is just a different kind of experience. The difference is that making a live action movie you are using your whole body.

I did Brad's first film The Take and I'm glad Brad [Furman] has not calmed down. I don't want him to ever calm down.

I was just school class clown and that was it. Someday I'll get a job as a cab driver or whatever.

The New York Times made you or broke you.

I'd be terrified even now for a Latin kid wanting to be an actor, but back then? Forget it. They must have thought I was going to be working in restaurants and driving cabs for the rest of my life.

I've been hurt so many times I don't have the balls for it anymore.

It might have been really cool back in the '50s when it was less populated but I don't know.

I had my neck hurt for like five years, I could barely move my neck from doing this stunt, I almost died twice doing stunts, it's really dangerous.

I have a lot of heroes. I don't think people give enough of a tribute to their mentors. They try to act like they're spontaneous generations - they are faking liars.

The beautiful thing about acting is that you can go your whole life if you stay current and you stay fresh.

When I started performing I was like, "Holy hell, how am I going to survive this?" I was giving it my all in 15 minutes but now I had to do it for two hours.

I knew Linda Cardellini from when we did ER together - she was always great, such a cool spirit.

I would be jokesmithing. I had files with tons of disses that I would try to write as I was on the train going to school.

I did an HBO movie called Undefeated that I directed. It was too hard.

The difficulty of being a Latin kid, a Latin man in this country [U.S].

The more times you do something, the more likely it is you're going to get it wrong.

I did the bible as told through Hispanic people and they laughed and applauded. I thought, "Oh my god, this is what I want to do for the rest of my life."

I had a whole new respect for directors.

Tennessee Williams, one of my favorite playwrights, [lived] down there. You always heard about the Keys and how amazing they are and, well, it's like a highway with some bars on it.

I love cartoons. So when they came to me to make Ice Age and this sequel, I was so happy.

In Moulin Rouge I could not change the name of Toulouse-Lautrec obviously to Toulouse-Lautrec- Martinez. But in ER I did that, my name is Dr Victor Clemente, so sometimes it is possible.

I wanted to enjoy the process. I wanted to enjoy just being on stage and giving back and the feedback.

I'm just more comfortable with people who are like me than the people who are not.

You can't really walk anywhere. Where are you going to go? Everything closes at a certain hour and it's a highway with bars on it; that's what it is.

Acting is kind of a calling for me so I'm just happy to be there and do great work.

I love life, man, and I embrace every minute of it so maybe I bring that on the set. I love people and I want to have a good time.

Some kids are fine, but often I don't like what I see in child actors. My kids are young and they are already showing an interest, so I have to try to discourage them, squash that in them.

[Brad Furman] wants to try stuff, he's willing to try stuff. And he wants electricity on the camera. And that's what I want, I want electricity whenever I'm performing.

First I went to C.W. Post and I was a psychology and theater major and then I transferred to NYU's Tisch School of the Arts as a drama major.