"There are a lot of people who call themselves teachers or leaders, but they’re really just propagandists."

"Making the [Criminal] video was a huge step for me, personally, because I’m not comfortable doing any of that. When we were shooting, there were all these female extras who are paid to be pretty. They tried to make me pretty, but that’s not what I do: I am paid to sing and perform. So I’m there, as insecure as ever, surrounded by all these dancer-models strutting around in bikinis. I had a stand-in, and she was gorgeous. I was dying."

"My mama always used to tell me, ‘If you can’t find somethin’ to live for, you best find somethin’ to die for.’"

"Do you remember as a kid, when some part of the house was dirty that you weren’t responsible for but your mother still said, “Clean it up”? Well, obviously I had nothing to do with what went on at the World Trade Center, but people are really affected by it and if I see somebody in trouble, as an artist, as a human being, if there is something I can do that can be helpful or useful, I’m going to do it. It’s a responsibility of life to respond to your surroundings and your world."

"Telling a guy the real reasons you’re not interested — you don’t find him attractive, he’s way too old for you, you get a distinctly creepy vibe off him, whatever — or offering no explanation at all, because you just met this guy and owe him nothing, would be “rude.” And thanks to the conditioning Harriet describes, exhibiting the slightest hint of “rudeness” to any stranger who approaches you with sex on his mind makes you feel not like a normal human being with healthy boundaries, but a mean, frigid, stuck-up bitch. Worse yet, sometimes, the same man who called you beautiful and offered to buy you a drink ten seconds ago will turn aggressive when you say you’re not interested; he’ll tell you flat out you’re a bitch, or a whore, or less printable things. He’ll reject your rejection by getting in your face and losing his temper. So really, it’s a lot safer and simpler to say, “Look, you’re a nice guy, but no thanks/I have a boyfriend/I can’t."