Musician

Part of being an artist is being willing to be shocked, being willing to be surprised, being willing to be hurt.

A lot of artists say, I'm not political. People are afraid of this word.

I don't believe in nirvana. If nirvana was handed to us on a silver platter, this would be the first day of our struggle to keep it.

I don't believe in nirvana. If nirvana was handed to us on a silver platter, this would be the first day of our struggle to keep it.

The women's movement completely changed attitudes all over the world in ways we'll never be able to count.

I like this life. I like it when it's hard, and I like it better when it's not, but I know you don't get the sweet part without the bitter.

I'm not allowing my perspective to be dictated by the dominant culture.

Language is like songs, like food, like dance-it is the expression of what we think.

Why do we kill people who are killing people to show that killing people is wrong?

If you have the guts to keep making mistakes, your wisdom and intelligence leap forward with huge momentum.

Part of being an artist is being willing to be shocked, being willing to be surprised, being willing to be hurt.

If you have the guts to keep making mistakes, your wisdom and intelligence leap forward with huge momentum.

Part of keeping space open is not to try to choose a form - to spend more time thinking about content, and let form take care of itself.

Music can be used against us as much as it can be used for us. Muzak can put a whole nation to sleep, whereas a lullaby is intended to put a child to sleep in a sweet way.

It's been important to me to be a good activist, a good thinker, a good musician, a good singer, and a good entertainer. You can't do it all, but I have walked those delicate lines as best I know how.

Music can be used against us as much as it can be used for us. Muzak can put a whole nation to sleep, whereas a lullaby is intended to put a child to sleep in a sweet way.

We who are interested in relative truth have to keep digging for it and not let ourselves be sucked under.

When we make mistakes, say, I'm blessed that I have an opportunity to learn from this.

My parents encouraged thought. You'll get through life better if you learn how to think.

When an audience comes to one of my concerts, I hope they'll see themselves, somewhere, in one of the songs.