Miguel
Travel aesthetics should be just as comfortable and practical as they are fashionable.Collection: Travel
I could speak Spanish fluently growing up, but I'm so out of practice, and I have such a tremendous respect for songwriting in the Spanish language.Collection: Respect
I believe dreams represent the purest form of fantasy we unleash through our subconscious. They represent the truest freedom we can experience. Totally unrepressed and totally creative.Collection: Experience
Historically, black music has influenced other cultures and other genres and created other genres.Collection: Music
I feel like when you are really appreciative, it makes it easier to have a better outlook and perspective of life in general.
Some of us are only going to show our emotions while we're actually vulnerable. But that's what makes us human.
When I'm a part of someone else's creative process, it's all about facilitating their ideas and hopefully bringing their perspective and making it a part of a song.
For me, the creative process for me always starts in a personal place. I step away from my iPod or any records or CDs.
I grew up in Los Angeles when the racial tensions between blacks and Mexicans were very high. Gang violence was very prevalent.
Interestingly, I matured as a musician and as an artist before I matured as a man. What I mean by that is, I was ready to be completely vulnerable and honest with myself and unapologetic when it comes to how I express myself in my medium. But I wasn't as secure in doing that when it came to just being myself.
At the end of the day, as a grown man, I don't really care what the sexuality of the next man is.
Art is based on emotion, but being macho is based on ego; the wall protecting that emotion.
I think that the best part of music is when it comes from a real place and has an ability to kind of connect on a much larger scale. It no longer is a personal thing, it becomes everyone else's thing as well.
Man, I grew up like everybody else. Middle-low income family. My parents got divorced like most of the rest of the country.
I associate creativity with independent music.
I think my style as far as vocal delivery and even down to the pronunciation of certain words is so deliberate.
My sound is definitely what I like to call 'e-clectric.'
I'm a nice guy, but I like to get into trouble.
I fell in love with funk music through my father - Funkadelic - as well as soul and classical early on.
The extremes of who I'd love to be onstage are David Bowie, Prince, and, I don't know, Bjork.
I think your conversations are indicative of your tastes - even your diction.
One of the most telling things about a person is how they say hello, handshakes.
Twitter is definitely not the place to handle business per se.
I feel like R&B as a genre has become a caricature of itself.
I feel that as artists - whatever your medium is - I feel that we're watching what goes on around us and we take what we don't see, or we don't hear, or we don't feel and we do something that speaks of it; more about it, for it, or against it - whatever our perspective is - that's what our job is.
I think it's natural for an artist to explore as they evolve.
I always had a fascination with music.
I want everyone to express themselves in a unique way.
I just think that Jack White is the consummate artist - an artist's artist. I'm a huge fan.
I think the illest thing about Wiz Khalifa is how true to himself he's always been, and I miss that from artists. Nothing about what he does ever felt like he was reaching to be something that he wasn't.
'SNL' is probably one of the premiere outlets that a musician can perform on that isn't obviously a music outlet.
I don't think I live the lifestyle that's expected of a quote unquote R&B artist. I'm just not that dude.
I've honestly never worked with Beyonce. It would be awesome, though; I would love that.
I mean, there's plenty of artists who are making R&B music, but because of their ethnicity, it's considered something else.
You know, people aren't always the most open-minded.
It was important for me to remind people that there's no formula... there's no boundary to R&B music.
I can write hundreds of songs on simple power chords.
I have this propensity to just come out and say things. That's how I am in real life.
I'm really excited to put music out that is a clear projection of my lifestyle.
I think at any point, as an artist, whatever the medium - just having an audience means the world.
A lot of people forget that R&B put hip-hop on, R&B put rock on.
I think there's always been progressive R&B music.
To its credit, hip-hop is my favorite genre, to this day, and it's hard not to be influenced by the culture and by the movement of it and by the soul of it.
If you're interested in any artist, go see them live. I always say that you should go see an artist live. That's an experience that only you and the people in the room can say that they have.
I embrace that I'm different. That I'm unique.Collection: Unique
I think in a world where everyone wants to categorize and compartmentalize and rationalize, it's OK to be different.Collection: Thinking
I have learned that you're only relevant to someone if you're beneficial to them somehow/some wayCollection: Way
You only know that you’re in love when you suffer.Collection: Suffering
It doesn’t matter how much you love someone, you are never going to be what that person wants you to be.Collection: Want
You can't take yourself too seriously. But always have conviction.Collection: Conviction