Quotes from Mark Foster

Fear just crushes creativity, and if I let fear into the studio and into the songwriting, I was going to let it kill the artist inside of me.

Pressure has always been more of a friend than a foe for me with songwriting.

I started out with piano when I was little. That, for songwriting, is my favorite instrument.

I was afraid of the sophomore slump even before our first record came out. It was a very real fear because I'd watched so many bands I'd loved in the past not deliver. I knew it was a very real thing. I didn't know why it happens, but I'd been thinking about it a lot.

I've played so many gigs in front of around seven people. It's difficult to keep motivated, but it's all about growth. The love of music kept me going.

When I write a song, the music comes from my spirit, which is very playful and optimistic, but then the lyrics come from my head, which is in a different space.

Once I write something, I never try to write that same style again, because I get very schizophrenic musically.

I'd rather be a poor singer/songwriter doing what I love than get rich from selling my soul.

Arcade Fire has kept their indie cred. They will sell out stadiums yet still have underdog status. But when you're a band like Coldplay, people are waiting to knock you down.

It's the meanest thing to abuse your power as a songwriter. To write pointedly about someone... it's kind of unfair to use them. They can't answer you or have a rebuttal.

It's funny: the one time I got star-struck was when I met Snoop Dogg. I gave him a hug and said, 'I love you, man.'

I was an only child, so I was alone a lot.

'I Get Around' came on one day. I'd never heard the Beach Boys before. The sound was so fresh to me. That was the first time when I truly was gripped by the power of music. It opened my eyes to the heights that music can achieve.

That's how life is: there are peaks and valleys in life, and that's how I like to write songs.

We're not trying to be a mega-pop-band, but we also wouldn't be opposed to selling millions of records, either.

I wanted to be an attorney all the way up until I was 17.

I don't consider myself an entertainer. I consider myself an artist, and I think with that comes responsibility.

I think that there's a difference between being an entertainer and being an artist.

Music is the great equalizer.

I play guitar, bass, drums, piano, and pretty much any sort of stringed instrument - besides violin or cello.