We didn't have music videos. You weren't an overnight sensation. You had to work at it and learn your craft: how to take care of your voice, how to pace your concerts, all that trial and error.
Aretha FranklinRead
I've been around long enough for people to know who I am and what my contributions are. They know me as more than just an artist. I think they know me as a woman as well.
Interpretation
This quote reflects on the recognition of one's identity beyond just their professional role, emphasizing personal contributions and individuality.
Aretha Franklin expresses her belief that her identity and legacy transcend her role as an artist. She feels that people recognize her not only for her musical contributions but also as a woman with depth and experience, highlighting the importance of being seen as a complete person in society.
In practice
During a speech at an art exhibit, one might use this quote to highlight the multifaceted nature of artists.
We didn't have music videos. You weren't an overnight sensation. You had to work at it and learn your craft: how to take care of your voice, how to pace your concerts, all that trial and error.
Trying to grow up is hurting. You make mistakes. You try to learn from them, and when you don't, it hurts even more.
My mentor was Clara Ward of the famous Ward gospel singers of Philadelphia. And my dad was my coach. He coached me. And just my natural love for music is what drove me.
It really is an honor if I can be inspirational to a younger singer or person. It means I've done my job.
In terms of helping people understand and know each other a little better, music is universal - universal and transporting.
Everybody wants respect. In their own way, three-year-olds would like respect, and acknowledgment, in their terms.
Buying books was a way anyone could acquire a work of art for very little.
They hear it come out, but they don't know how it got there. They don't understand that's life's way of talking. You don't sing to feel better. You sing 'cause that's a way of understanding life.
I think all directors should be animators.
When you pose for a photograph, it's behind a smile that isn't yours. You are angry and hungry and alive. What I value in you is that intensity. I want to make portraits as intense as people.
On a morning from a Bogart movie, in a country where they turn back time. You go strolling through the crowd like Peter Lorre, contemplating a crime. She comes out of the sun in a silk dress running like a watercolor in the rain. Don't bother asking for explanations, she'll just tell you that she came in the year of the cat.
Music may be the activity that prepared our pre-human ancestors for speech communication and for the very cognitive, representational flexibility necessary to become humans.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.