Quotes About Culture

With television, attention spans have been shortened. It's something we have to fight against: the dumbing down of the audience. To be part of an audience is a privilege. To be with the people on stage, to let them reach you. If you're doing a million other things, they won't reach you.

Not all my work features black actors. I mean, it's funny: someone was reading back to me all the languages that have appeared in my films, whether they were shorts or features. They span Arabic, French, Mandarin, Cantonese - all kinds of languages. I think it's really cool.

When you are Spanish girl, you got to grow up in a convent if you want to get married.

I don't speak fluent Spanish. I took it in college.

I speak some Spanish. I would love to go make a movie in Spanish. I'd love to be in an Almodovar movie or an Inarritu.

As a singer, it's basic to preserve what I like to do, which is music, and also to remember my cradlesongs in Spanish.

There are some Chicanos who don't want to be Chicanos - they want to be Mexican-American, Hispanic, or even Spanish.

My thoughts, my feelings, my spirit, they are all in Spanish.

When a Spanish actor does an accent, that's sexy. When Peter Sellers did a French accent in 'Pink Panther,' that's funny - he got nominated for a Golden Globe. How come whenever an Asian actor does an accent, he's stereotyping?

I grew up in The Bronx. I mean, I was born and raised in New York City. And I started singing in Spanish because I was always just connected to my Latin roots.

I could attempt a project in English, but I'd like to continue singing in Spanish.

I grew up speaking Spanish. The woman who helped raise me was only Spanish-speaking, so it was one of my primary languages as a kid. And I lived in Spain for a while.

Wherever you've got a migrant culture, the food evolves and in New Orleans it's that French and Spanish influence. So you get gumbo, which came out of French bouillabaisse, jambalaya - a version of paella - and the boudin sausage, which is like the French boudin.

Well, you know, for me, I think Spanish food is festive.

That was when the Spanish came in and conquered the Aztecs. I thought that was a clever thing.

Spanish is such an important language globally.

When I was young, always in Serbia there were some telenovelas on television, Spanish language. Then you listen, listen, listen, you watch one series, and then you can understand.

I'm in awe of people who speak other languages not just fluently but near-native. I speak French, Spanish and Portuguese and I'm pretty good, but I'd love to understand all the nuances.

I love listening to pop songs in Spanish and Italian.

I would love to make a really cool Spanish song, definitely.

I learned French before I learned Spanish.

Originally, I thought English was more my home. But Spanish is so much more romantic. I've had to learn new phrases. I've had to learn to be more secure about singing in Spanish. But I'm working on it.

The way you pronounce words the Puerto Rico way, it's not really global for music. Colombians speak some of the best Spanish in the world. So having a Colombian next to me every time I write makes my music more international.

Feliz Navidad' has interfaced the English and Spanish cultures to come together and after all, we're living in a multi-cultural world.