Quotes About Talent

I come from Paisley, the same town as David Sneddon, who won 'Fame Academy.' When he was late for his homecoming reception in the town hall, they held an impromptu talent show. I ended up singing some songs, and that's how I was discovered.

You know in 1982, the year we came in tied for 3rd, we probably had a better team - I mean as far as talent. When we came back the following year and won it, our pitching staff was a little more experienced and it was such a thrill.

An offer to fight Muhammad Ali came after Stevenson won his second Olympic gold in Montreal in 1976. Stevenson was at his peak. The world had never seen a heavyweight with the tools Stevenson brought into the ring.

It's not just the goalscorer who should be the best player in the world. It is totally wrong that some great players never won the Ballon d'Or because of their position.

I won my first singing award with 'Auliya.'

We're at the top echelon of motorsports, and we've got guys who have never won Late Model races running on the racetrack. It's pathetic. They don't know where to go.

Had I not got into acting and modeling, I would have been a part of the national cricket team. I'm a right-handed batsman and a pace bowler and have won lots of awards during my college and school days.

I began playing in the senior circuit when I was 15 and won the world senior amateur title the same year.

Dorothy Hamill was my big idol as a kid. She'd won the Olympics in 1976. She was America's sweetheart with her personality, her talent, her haircut.

I knew if I stayed in London my whole life would be dancing. I'd won almost every major title you can. I thought 'This really isn't my passion. I really want to sing,' and I knew I wouldn't be able to if I stayed there.

I won the first contest I ever entered, when I was 6.

I have no idea why I won, man. I guess some people liked the music that I was doing. I'm just lucky. I was just doing my thing each week.

Cary Grant never won an Oscar, primarily, I suspect, because he made everything look so effortless. Why reward someone for having fun, for being charming?

Books don't live and die by awards. You don't listen to an Hector Lavoe album because it won some awards.

I prefer career artists that have spent time honing their craft, as opposed to, 'I won a karaoke contest on a reality show and now I have a record.' That's such a drag. The music that comes out of it is so poor.

The fact that I am blind is not what defines my life. It should be of no more interest than my blood type. People wonder if there is a relationship between my lack of sight and the way I sing. But there's no connection.

I wasn't handsome. I didn't have good clothes. I used to wonder why people would hire me when they could get college graduates and Oxford scholars. Then it became apparent that when I got up on a stage, people actually wanted to look at me.

When I was a kid, I remember trying to emulate Stevie Wonder's sound, and Donny Hathaway's sound. It's just part of who I am - I'm just a soulful kind of dude.

To sing along with Stevie Wonder, you had to make your voice do things it was not accustomed to doing.

In my eyes, there's no one better than Stevie Wonder. He's a top dude.

This whole 'X Factor' thing with people assuming I'm going to be a one-hit wonder - that won't happen with me.

The thing I wonder about is where does Brian's creative spark come from? Not his subjects or anything, but his spark. What makes it so great for me is that I really don't know. There's a mystery behind Brian, even to me.

It's been so long since a talented writer last occupied the White House; no wonder, then, that American writers have been among the most prominent of all the demographic groups claiming a piece of Barack Obama for themselves.

People wonder if there is a relationship between my lack of sight and the way I sing. But there's no connection.