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" When I worked with my uncle, I loved the fact that jazz music demanded that you use your own unique approach. "

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" Some people think that all you do is record, and it's not the case. You take on other projects as well, and you have to live a little bit because it inspires your work. "

" Jazz is such a living art form. It happens right in the moment. You weave a story by changing certain elements and components. "

" In high school, we had a really great jazz program that I finally was able to be a part of. They only wanted instrumentalists; they didn't want any singers. But I made my way in, and I remember the conductor of the band wrote a lot of arrangements and asked me what I wanted to sing. "

" I think the only way for you to grow and evolve is to keep listening, keep moving forward, keep jumping in and trying to experience. "

" I love being with artists because I'm always open to getting into something. "

" Your voice is not your instrument. Your voice is the character that you build, your innermost feelings, the things that you want to say, and your instrument is the vehicle that you use to carry the message. "

" I think that when I started singing, I didn't know what I wanted to do; I only knew what I didn't want to do. "

" My foundation is jazz. I do all the things jazz musicians do. "

" Nina Simone is a musical genius and a rich and precious treasure who paid a heavy price for her artistic freedom. "

" My friend Harry Belafonte is an activist and musician, an extraordinary man who has dedicated his life to human rights. He taught me the power of words and that music can be used to heal and educate people. "

" I always have a little bit of Brazil and New Orleans in my band. "

" People think jazz music is all standards and the Great American Songbook. But it's really about the sensibility, the feel you bring to the music. "

" The music industry is changing. You only hear a sprinkling of big names, but there are a lot of really wonderful young musicians with great voices and lyrical content who have refined their sound. They're up in here, so don't think they're not. There's this wealth of talent below the surface that's ready to explode. "

" In any event, I'm proud to wear the badge of jazz vocalist if that's what people want to call me; but at the same time, there are many other things I like to do. "

" I love New York City because there's something to do 24/7, something that will make you see things in a whole different light. Like they say, it's the city that never sleeps. "

" I always say that improvisation is the utterance of one's spirit, and it dictates your life experience, and that's how you find your concepts and your way for painting your musical picture. "

" I'm always inspired to push forward. "

" My musical selections are a reflection of how I grew up. Because, back then, you could see Miles Davis and Ravi Shankar on the same stage. And nobody thought anything of it, other than the fact that it was great music. "

" I believe that music should really be without boundaries. "

" Music is a conversation between the audience and me, and I love that about my profession. "

" Jazz musicians have always taken the standards of their time and performed them with a jazz sensibility. "

" When I moved to Los Angeles, right away I met all kinds of musicians. "

" When I found out how music made me feel and how my singing made other people feel, that's when I decided this is what I wanted to do. "

" I think jazz is the foundation for a lot of great musicians, and then after that, you know, it's this broad expression of things that really have influenced and addressed your life. "

" I came up at a time in the late '60s, early '70s where music was without boundaries. You'd go into a music store, and the music was in alphabetical order. I hadn't heard of that word 'genre.' "

" I think people have come to know that I am not comfortable in a box, you know, and that I love music. "

" Art and culture and all of these things - they really matter. They shape your individuality. "

" I think an artist who has it in their heart to do or say something, they'll say it. It's not something that's mandatory, but it will come out. "

" Too many people judge a singer like Beyonce by what they see on the surface. Knowing the musicians she's worked with and how she works, I have a lot of respect for her. "

" I feel proud of my journey. I wouldn't change it. "