Quotes About Self-expression

Basically, when I put on clothes, it's all strictly about my mood. It's all about how I'm feeling that day or in that moment.

It's been a challenge for me my whole life in that my insides don't necessarily match my outsides... People try to strike up a conversation with me about Dungeons & Dragons or comic books, and I'm like, 'I can't. I'm sorry.'

Of all the things I do, acting is the thing that grabs most, but there's another level on which it strikes me as being a little silly. In the end you're dressing up and deciding to be somebody.

Trying to conceal the fact that I was a gay, effeminate, hyperactive, adopted child with a serious lisp in southern Louisiana would have been like trying to hide Dolly Parton in a string bikini!

I went through a string of A&R men who all thought I should be doing something different. One thought I should be a dance diva; another thought I should do Rock n' Roll; and one thought I shouldn't even be singing at all!

I just couldn't take school seriously: I had this guitar neck with four frets which I kept hidden under the desk. It had strings on it so I would practice my chord shapes under the desk and that's about all I did at school.

I still feel like the 10-year-old dancing in front of her mirror, mostly to 'No Strings Attached.'

When you're biracial, you can feel like you're fully neither, not fully both. But I won't strip away my heritage for anyone's comfort.

When we strip away the clothes, the jewelry, that's who we really are. I walk around naked in my house.

I don't have a problem with my body. I'm not just going to strip off all my clothing, but if the part calls for it and I don't think there's any way round, I'm absolutely fine.

I tend to sort of over-accessorize, but to feel empowered, I strip it all down and become minimal so that it's almost counterintuitive.

I encourage women to wear color, wear stripes, wear sequins - just wear what makes you feel confident and strong. If it looks good and fits well, you'll look great and feel great, too.

Our generation has become somewhat stripped of identity by the homogenizing effect of technology. So, more than ever, people want to project their own individuality.

I remember being obsessed with Christina Aguilera's 'Stripped.' That was her peak, and she is such an amazing singer. Plus, I was a little gay boy, and the music video for 'Beautiful' existed, so obviously I was affected.

One girl who stands out was this Miami stripper. She still lives with her mother and father, and they know she strips. They call her by her stripper name, Freaky Red.

I've always avoided publicity. I've never been good copy at any stage of my life. I don't strive for it, because I don't think it's important whether I'm good copy or not. The two can go together, if that's your personality, but every person on this earth is unique.

In this world, one thing you should definitely strive for is originality. Just be who you are, and be your own person. That's what will make you stand out.

I strive to destroy fear and judgment that once stifled me.

I always strive for freedom: freedom of thought and expression.

Certainly, I don't believe in rebellion for its own sake. But I think if you strive to do something in an individualistic way, you just become a rebel by definition.

Just as dressing well in your forties entails making choices that reflect who you are and not just wearing generic basics, looking good as you get older requires accentuating and enjoying what's specific to you rather than striving for cookie-cutter perfection.

Ballet, there's a right way to do things, and it's black and white, and it's all striving for perfection. Acting is not that way. It's very gray, and the messier you can be, the better. The mistakes that you make are the gold and the beautiful stuff.

Ultimately, what we're striving for is people being allowed to do what they want and not feeling they should or shouldn't do certain things.

My whole premise has been, right from the beginning, that it would take me a lifetime to learn to explain myself as an artist. As you grow older, you learn what to do and what to leave out. You kind of simplify your work and get the same thing done with fewer strokes. It's pretty interesting to me.