It's possible and available to any artist to be himself or herself on their own terms, to be accepted and embraced by black people. You don't have to be a thug to get love from black people.

I don't care about what brand you are, I'm concerned what type of man you are, what your principles and standards are.

Fear not of men because men must die. Mind over matter and soul before flesh.

I dreamt that I could paint you with words, but there were no colors bright enough, black or white enough, blue or green enough...they didn't mean enough

Make today's solid ground out of yesterday's quicksand.

Good art provides people with a vocabulary about things they can't articulate.

They say that when a man faces his destiny, the destiny ends and he becomes the man that he really is.

It’s one thing to be the greatest; it’s another thing to be necessary. The best are the most necessary: those who take less than they give and love more than they hate.

My presence speaks volumes before I say a word.

That idea of peace and love toward humanity shouldn't be nationalistic or denominational. It should be a chief concern for all mankind.

I don't want to waste anyone's time or money. I want to give people some truth and positive heart lift.

Never Expect Loyalty From A Person That Can't Give You Honesty.

Whatever it is that isn't uplifting or educating your mind, surely doesn't deserve a moment of shelter in it.

Birth, life, death is a cycle. And they're all beautiful, you celebrate all of them. Animals do grieve, but they move on. That's the lesson behind animals.

Whether you're keeping a journal or writing as a meditation, it's the same thing. What's important is you're having a relationship with your mind.

The best revenge is, of course, a good life. Enjoy yourself, be happy, be successful. It'll drive them crazy-or you can imagine it does. You'll feel so good you won't care.

In life, we choose whether or not we want to be a winner or a loser. To be a winner, we must devote time and hard work. To be a loser you do nothing, and that's exactly what you will get, nothing.

The manner of your speaking is full as important as the matter, as more people have ears to be tickled than understandings to judge.

The room was darker and smelled of evergreen, as though my mother had been dreaming of trees.

Harmonizing opposites by going back to their source is the distinctive quality of the Zen attitude, the Middle Way: embracing contradictions, making a synthesis of them, achieving balance.

Sometimes I wonder if all my friends are insane.