I view my hair and clothes as functional art.
Erykah BaduRead
I'm free. I just do what I want, say what I want, say how I feel, and I don't try to hurt nobody. I just try to make sure that I don't compromise my art in any kind of way, and I think people respect that.
Interpretation
This quote expresses the importance of personal freedom and authenticity in creative expression without harming others.
Erykah Badu emphasizes the significance of being true to oneself and maintaining artistic integrity while navigating life. She articulates a philosophy of living freely, expressing emotions openly, and prioritizing one's unique voice and art, all while being considerate of others. This embodies a balance between self-expression and respect for those around us, highlighting the value of genuine creativity and the respect it garners.
In practice
In a motivational speech about pursuing one's passion.
I view my hair and clothes as functional art.
Hip-hop was created out of necessity. We needed to create some digitized things to help us understand what we were feeling.
Hopefully my music is medicine, some type of antidote for something or some kind of explanation or just to feel good.
Hip-hop is not something we do, it's something we live. It's the way we dress, the way we talk... everybody bobbing to the same beat. It's a culture, and you have to find your own place in that culture. Top 10 or Top 40 can't dictate that. They can only dictate what's marketable.
We as Black people have to tell our own stories. We have to document our history. When we allow someone else to document our history the history becomes twisted and we get written out. We get our noses blown off.
Vegan food is soul food in its truest form. Soul food means to feed the soul. And, to me, your soul is your intent. If your intent is pure, you are pure.
When I see a white piece of paper, I feel I've got to draw. And drawing, for me, is the beginning of everything.
It is part of the poet's work to show each man what he sees but does not know he sees.
I write music, it’s performed. After all, my music says it all. It doesn’t need historical and hysterical commentaries. In the long run, any words about music are less important than the music.
I wanted to share my doubts and my culinary, amorous, and cosmic experiences. So I wrote 'Like Water for Chocolate,' which is merely the reflection of who I am as a woman, a wife, a mother, a daughter.
There is something suspicious about music, gentlemen. I insist that she is, by her nature, equivocal. I shall not be going too far in saying at once that she is politically suspect.
To speak today of a famous novelist is like speaking of a famous cabinetmaker or speedboat designer. Adjective is inappropriate to noun.
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