I've never been one for keeping a journal, so my songs were my journals. They allowed me to express my feelings and let people know what was going on with me. I knew that somebody would relate.
Interpretation
Music serves as a personal outlet for expressing emotions and experiences.
In this quote, Janet Jackson reflects on her choice not to keep a traditional journal, instead using her songs as a means of documenting her life and emotions. She highlights the connection between her personal experiences and the impact they can have on others, suggesting that through her music, she creates a shared understanding and emotional resonance with her audience.
In practice
During a speech about the importance of self-expression, one might use this quote to illustrate how art can convey personal experiences.
People tend to put entertainers on pedestals. We're human beings, just like you. You may see us smiling, and whether we have money or not, we still have bills to pay, we still have our stresses. I think a lot of people want to focus on others' shortcomings to make themselves feel better. And it's a very sad thing.
I'm convinced that we Black women possess a special indestructible strength that allows us to not only get down, but to get up, to get through, and to get over.
I feel most people’s sexuality is enormously complicated. That’s what it means to be human. Wouldn’t it be great if we honored that complexity rather than turn it into gossip or ridicule? Wouldn’t it be great if we accepted sexual diversity, in ourselves and others, without condemning it?
Some of my battles with weight have been very public. But most of them have been internal. Even at my thinnest, when my body was being praised, I wasn't happy with what I saw in the mirror or how I felt about myself.
Every poem is a momentary stay against the confusion of the world.
So now, from this mad passion Which made me take art for an idol and a king I have learnt the burden of error that it bore And what misfortune springs from man's desire... The world's frivolities have robbed me of the time That I was given for reflecting upon God.
The first act of insight is throw away the labels. In fiction, while we do not necessarily write about ourselves, we write out of ourselves, using ourselves; what we learn from, what we are sensitive to, what we feel strongly about--these become our characters and go to make our plots. Characters in fiction are conceived from within, and they have, accordingly, their own interior life; they are individuals every time.
The only condition of fighting for the right to create is faith in your own vocation, readiness to serve, and refusal to compromise.
When I land in a country and they ask for 'occupation,' I always just put 'artist.' I think that covers all of it.
But what is art other than revealing human nature?
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