Quotes About Authenticity

Any album that you pick up of mine, you know it's an Akon album. The guests are very limited, and you get to really feel the experience. You get the Akon experience when you get the albums. I always want to make sure that stays the way it is. I don't want to flood the album to where you lose focus on why you bought it.

I want to be Gwyneth Paltrow when I grow up! She's been able to have such a great career, such a great family and she stays so humble and so real.

I could not be one of those actors who stays in character all day long. I'd go mad.

I have a lot of written material, and all of it's different. Some records that I have are country, some pop, some alternative rock. I just write what I feel, so I can't specifically say. I just want to be an artist of truth and an artist that stays true to herself.

The greatest legacy that I can have is to build a brand that lives beyond me and stays true to the DNA of the brand.

Stand-up is one of the art forms where you don't have to look nice, and I hope it stays that way.

Hopefully, the media will eventually learn to celebrate a woman who, through all the noise, is able to hold steadfast to her mission and stay true to herself. Regardless, Melania Trump is proud to be the first lady of the United States and is proud to represent the American people.

I was the biggest liar for no reason, and then as I got older, I thought, 'Why am I lying to everybody?' I would hear other people lie and be like, 'You sound so stupid.' So then I would just change my lies. The only person I lie to is my little sister, when I steal her clothes.

Someone gave me a piece of advice once, my first manager Lucien Hold. He said, 'If you do stand-up about your own life, no one can steal it.' I always thought that was the best piece of advice.

The one and only thing that every comic agrees on is that you do not steal jokes.

There's a difference between hiring writers and stealing jokes.

When somebody says that a comic steals jokes, it's the ultimate betrayal of comedy.

Once conform, once do what other people do because they do it, and a lethargy steals over all the finer nerves and faculties of the soul. She becomes all outer show and inward emptiness; dull, callous, and indifferent.

I lived what we call 'stealth' for a number of years. Even when I started acting in the industry, I didn't disclose. I didn't come out. My first job on 'Law & Order' was not a trans role.

The jokes I was always attracted to, and that I would tell for the longest, were jokes where I cared about the subject. Whenever I wrote a joke where I didn't care, even if it was really funny, the third time I told it, it would lose steam.

I like hearing fiddles, steel guitar, acoustics up loud - really rock & roll stuff but with a country sound behind it. That's just who I am. I'm not trying to prove a point; I am just doing what I like. But I don't have any problems with any other artist coming in and doing their own thing.

L.A. has got to be the poser capital of the world. Around here Quiet Riot, Motley Crue, and Ratt are the heaviest in the world. So if that's heavy we must be molten steel.

The whole 'serious artist' thing is very damaging. The powers that be will steer you towards your own demise. One thing I've learned is that it's not very glamourous, and my problems are no different from anybody else's.

I love working for myself. I've grown to dislike the Hollywood machine. Too much bull, disappointment, and quite frankly, untalented, mindless, and hugely disrespectful people involved in the process. I'll take carrying the load on my back, all the way up Everest if needed, to be able to steer away from it.

For KRS-One, I have a specific sound - sparse drums and bass. I try to steer away from elaborate productions.

Some people like to drive a Ford, not a Ferrari, and some people like to drink out of a red Solo cup, not out of a crystal stem.

I think comedy stems from being honest, often painfully so. I hope I can achieve that perspective in my own life and also have fun.

The biggest thing is the heart. If you find the heart in what you do, if it's stage work, set work, modeling, you find the heart of it, that's where the truth actually stems from. Our true personality shines from within.

Being in the spotlight, you're always picked apart. It's not easy. But over time I've realized that you can't please everyone and when you feel overwhelmed, just take a step back. Love yourself first.