Famous quotes
Quotes by famous people, credited to who said them. Your own quotes must not match any of these. More are added all the time. 1,158,269 quotes Who coined it · How we decide
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“We live in a world of disposable music; fast-food music without any content... Music is not fireworks, music is feeling. So let's try to change this and bring music back which is really what matters.”
Salvador Sobral (born 1989) first seen 2017 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Portugal's Eurovision triumph", Euronews (14 May 2017)
“At present I am too busy with my filming schedule I don't have time to pursue my music career. Besides, the Vietnamese music industry is saturated with new comers, the audiences are confused with the music style of these new comers. Many singers have small success but they think they are stars that makes me bored of the of the music business now. I am not sure if i will return to music.”
Ngô Thanh Vân (born 1979) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Interview with Ngo Thanh Van" in StarsBuz (26 April 2009)
“Music was my first love And it will be my last Music of the future And music of the past To live without my music would be impossible to do In this world of troubles my music pulls me through”
John Miles (1949–2021) first seen 2001 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: John Miles, "Music" (song on YouTube. Live, 2001.)
“I was criticized by some people for my first album because they said I was taking sacred music. They knew nothing about what I was doing. That was no sacred music; that's music I wrote. I patterned it around voodoo church music, but it wasn't exactly the music of the lyrics of nothing'.”
Dr. John (1941–2019) first seen 2010 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Cited in: Dave Thompson. Bayou Underground: Tracing the Mythical Roots of American Popular Music, 2010. p. 132
“Good music is good sound. Whenever good music comes on, you don’t say please turn that s—t off, that’s good music. Noise is not good music, noise is opposite of good music”
Runtown (born 1989) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Runtown dreams of marrying Rihanna. 12 December 2014, Vanguard Newspaper.
“I can’t stand to sing the same song the same way two nights in succession, let alone two years or ten years. If you can, then it ain’t music, it’s close-order drill or exercise or yodeling or something, not music.”
Billie Holiday (1915–1959) said by 1959 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“People will find it strange but Michael Jackson was a great inspiration. His music brought the world together as mine did. My inspiration also comes from my everyday challenges. I sing every song to praise God for holding my hand in my music career.”
Rose Mhando (born 1976) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I wanted your songs. You wanted my songs more than you wanted my happiness. So you took my happiness, and stole my songs.”
Orson Scott Card (born 1951) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I’ve heard it said that the happiest times in our lives is the period when pop songs really mean something to us, really get to us. It may be true. Or maybe not. Pop songs may, after all, be nothing but pop songs. And perhaps our lives are merely decorative, expendable items, a burst of fleeting color and nothing more.”
Haruki Murakami (born 1949) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I'm a songwriter but she [Melua] has her songs written for her... She must think it's her fucking lucky day... It's not like she's singing old songs like Jamie [Cullum], she's singing shit new songs that her manager writes for her.”
Katie Melua (born 1984) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I'm a songwriter but she [Katie Melua] has her songs written for her... She must think it's her fucking lucky day... It's not like she's singing old songs like Jamie [Cullum], she's singing shit new songs that her manager writes for her.”
Amy Winehouse (1983–2011) first seen 2004 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Sara McDonnell, "Amy Winehouse - Frank About All That Jazz" musicOMH (April 4, 2004)
“From a distance we are instruments Marching in a common band Playing songs of hope, playing songs of peace They're the songs of every man.”
Julie Gold (born 1956) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“To be moved, to be moved constantly by your own songs. You need it to be in tune with them, and I don’t mean in tune musically, but I mean in tune with the lyrics of the songs, with the words of the songs, and with the meaning. You need to be in tune with all of that, and that takes a little bit of doing.”
Roberta Flack (1937–2025) first seen 2018 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On choosing to perform the songs from her catalogue that still move her in “Roberta Flack Ready to Sing Again at Jazz Foundation of America Honors” in Billboard (2018 Oct 12)
“I know that If I had other features it would have been more elaborate. It would have been better if we had had different talents and points-of-views and all that. And I think the songs that have features are amazing and they complete the songs. But for the rest of the songs, I'm very happy that they are the way they are. They are telling my story and I want people to listen to it with my voice.”
Ayra Starr (born 2002) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Yes, I do have a lot of songs that are about love, but what I try to do is, I try to come from different angles, like you might hear my songs and say that they are love songs but they are not saying the same thing.”
Simi (singer) first seen 2017 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Her reply when asked the reasons her songs are centered on love, "SIMI TELLS CITY PEOPLE ABOUT HER NEW ALBUM, SIMISOLA – REVEALS THE STORY OF HER LIFE", City People (August 28, 2017)
“Trends are not timeless, timeless songs are unique in that they are something that comes out of specific moments. They are things that come from the heart but the danceable songs will always come and go and we all have some of these songs.”
MzVee (born 1992) first seen 2023 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Why trendy and danceable songs aren’t timeless music – MzVee explains, Ghana Web, 1 October 2023.
“If today you hear the songs broadcast by the first five-six networks, they are always those songs that circulate... The curious thing is that even today, very often you hear the songs of Gaetano.”
Lucio Dalla (1943–2012) said by 2012 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Gaetano wrote some of the songs that are part of our country's memory. Songs of memory are important. Think, for example, of Zazà or I papaveri alti alti – these are songs of memory that haven't been big commercial hits or whatnot, but they don't just last for the duration of a fad or a particular period; they're the ones that stay in the collective memory and are passed down orally.”
Renzo Arbore (born 1937) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Since time immemorial songs have always been used to convey a message. There are songs and songs - those that entertain, those that enlighten. I feel I am a witness of my time.”
Lounès Matoub (1956–1998) said by 1998 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It was honestly rushed, and I didn’t really think about it like a body of work. It was 18 songs, and who is releasing that many songs on a single project? With this new project, there are even songs that I’ve paid a lot of money for and I still didn’t use them because they just didn’t fit this project. That’s how cohesive I needed it to be.”
DDG (rapper) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We have heard that nature can sing some strange and unfamiliar songs. In coming to appreciate these songs, we develop a heightened perception... leavened by an admixture of our own creation...”
Frank Wilczek (born 1951) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Interviewer: Do you guys really live the lifestyle that you sing about in your songs? El Duce: Absolutely. All our songs are about reality. Like Sleep Bandits.”
Eldon Hoke (1958–1997) first seen 1993 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: El Duce, The Man, The Myth, The Video (1993) by Reverend Cuntbag
“I have observed that even the barbarians across the Rhine sing savage songs composed in language not unlike the croaking of harsh-voiced birds, and that they delight in such songs. For I think it is always the case that inferior musicians, though they annoy their audiences, give very great pleasure to themselves.”
Julian (emperor) first seen 1913 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: On the songs of the early Germans, in his Mispogon, 337–338 (tr. W. C. Wright, ii, 1913)
“Won't you help to sing, These songs of freedom? 'Cause all I ever had, Redemption songs.”
Bob Marley (1945–1981) said by 1981 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We cannot be guided by an ethos of neglect, brokenness of heart, misery of spirit that will lead us into a future world devoid of joy. The world’s combined humanity must sing the planet up with careful songs, songs of responsibility and respect.”
Alexis Wright (born 1950) first seen 2023 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The black summer bushfires killed 3 billion animals. They are our relatives; they deserve to be mourned" article (2023)
“It is a summer of songs composed in blood, tuned with guns and arranged in conversations. It is a summer of songs I sing in swelling volumes.”
Makhosazana Xaba (born 1957) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Thank you for the past two nights that we [got] to sing the songs with you, that has been our comfort, and inspiration for the past 25++ years. We grew along with your songs…We are grateful to have you here in the Philippines. You and your band were awe-inspiring,” the “Be Careful with My Heart” actor told Morissette, before capping off his letter by wishing his hero “a great tour.”
Ice Seguerra (born 1983) first seen 2023 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ice Seguerra pays tribute to his ‘hero’ Alanis Morissette, says Grammy winner’s songs ‘a big part of my core’, By: Dale CalanogINQUIRER.net 4 August 2023.
“The first one can be songs of affirmation where you say what the Bible says about you. But when you now sing them as worship songs it does not fit in because you are talking about you. The second one is pure worship where you focus on God alone. Yes we are like Christ but cannot be worshiped.”
Frank Edwards (born 1989) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Then I would sing a little in the synagogue. See, if you're a singer, you love to turn your own ears on. You look for those rooms where the reverb is great. I remember the synagogue had a lot of wood and it was a great room. And it was a captive audience and you could sing these minor key songs and make them cry, and that was a thrill.”
Art Garfunkel (born 1941) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Why did the little girls grow crippled While the little boys grow strong The boys allowed to come of age The girls just came along The girls were told sing harmonies The boys could all sing songs That's why little girls grew crippled While little boys grew strong.”
Harry Chapin (1942–1981) said by 1981 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Nine times out of 10 when people do a tribute album or tribute songs for somebody, it's what I call 'white boys playing reggae'. They know they can't, we know they can't, so they sing like they can't and play like they can't. They gently make fun of the idiom or sing in a false accent.”
David Lee Roth (born 1954) first seen 2006 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: John Gerome (June 5, 2006) "Roth still 'Runnin' with the Devil' on bluegrass tribute", Associated Press.
“Liza Minnelli said she can't sing well enough those "special songs" of her late mother, Judy Garland, so she doesn't sing them at all. The award-winning entertainer said she'd "rather present a first-rate version of myself than a second-rate version of Mama.”
Liza Minnelli (born 1946) first seen 1974 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As paraphrased and quoted in "News Spotlight," The Kingsport Daily News (December 11, 1974), p. 9
“It really scared me to do what Mom did because I never did anything that she did. I promised her that I would never sing her songs, and I kept my promise. "You sing them better than anybody. I don't want to be a second-rate example of you. I want to be a first-rate example of myself.”
Liza Minnelli (born 1946) first seen 1996 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Liza Minnelli, as quoted in "Liza Minnelli 'Never Felt Better' Despite Tabloids' Whispers" by Douglas J. Rowe, in TV Plus: The Schenectady Sunday Gazette Supplement (June 9, 1996), p. 4
“This enterprise was doomed, but we do what we can and do what we must. So a young farmer with wife and children decides to go home. Good! He shows a sense that you and I will never understand. They will sing songs about us, but he will ensure that there are people to sing them. He plants. We destroy.”
David Gemmell (1948–2006) said by 2006 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“That's you now, hello, ciao. Seems that life is great now. See me lose focus, as I sing to you loud. I can't, no, I won't hush. I'll say the words that make you blush. I'm gonna sing this now. See, I'm true, my songs are where my heart is.”
Ed Sheeran (born 1991) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I sing of brooks, of blossoms, birds and bowers, Of April, May, of June and July-flowers; I sing of May-poles, hock-carts, wassails, wakes, Of bridegrooms, brides and of their bridal cakes; I write of youth, of love, and have access By these to sing of cleanly wantonness.”
Robert Herrick (poet) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I sing the cycle of my country's year, I sing the tillage, and the reaping sing, Classic monotony, that modes and wars Leave undisturbed, unbettered, for their best Was born immediate, of expediency.”
Vita Sackville-West (1892–1962) said by 1962 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Joy to the world! the Lord is come; Let earth receive her King. Let ev'ry heart prepare Him room, And heav'n and nature sing, And heaven and nature sing, And heaven, and heaven, and nature sing.”
Isaac Watts (1674–1748) said by 1748 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Come, sing now, sing; for I know you sing well; I see you have a singing face.”
John Fletcher (1579–1625) first seen 1621 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The Wild Goose Chase (c. 1621; pub. 1652), Act II. 2
“Crimson clover I discover By the garden gate, And the bees about her hover, But the robins wait. Sing, robins, sing, Sing a roundelay,— 'Tis the latest flower of Spring Coming with the May!”
Dora Read Goodale (1866–1953) first seen 1922 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Red Clover; reported in Hoyt's New Cyclopedia Of Practical Quotations (1922), p. 122.
“We cannot avoid or escape, but we can sing. (As to why the title of the film Bulbul Can Sing has the word sing, and why it matters to the story)”
Rima Das (born 1977) first seen 2018 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Women And Hollywood Article - Under the Radar: Rima Das’ “Bulbul Can Sing” Examines the Joy and Pain of Growing Up - 6 November 2018 - Archive
“I sing like it’s my last performance. Like I’ll never sing again. So I give it my absolute all. It’s a real gift to be able to do what you love, and I can never take an opportunity to sing for granted.”
Kudzai Sevenzo (born 1901) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Alice Cooper: "Look at Madonna; she did all the outrageous stuff, but she could sing. She was a great performer! If she got up there and she couldn't sing a lick, I'd go, 'Ok, this is a sideshow.' But, she can really sing.”
Madonna (entertainer) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A good song can only do good, and I am proud of the songs I have sung. I hope to be able to continue singing these songs for all who want to listen, Republicans, Democrats, and independents.”
Pete Seeger (1919–2014) first seen 1961 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Statement to the court prior to his sentencing for contempt of Congress (1961); also quoted on NPR: Weekend Edition (2 July 2005)
“I notice I do this thing where I 'feature' on my own songs. I'll write it for a more masculine part in the song, be the background vocalist, and the main vocalist. I do this because I write everything but hear other people on my shit sometimes, but I think I'm too attached to my songs to give them away.”
Doja Cat (born 1995) first seen 2019 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Cho, Regina (November 22, 2019). "Doja Cat Feels Liberated and More Focused Than Ever: 'I'm So Pumped For My Life Right Now'". Billboard.
“Most people don’t listen to classical music at all, but to rock-and-roll or hillbilly songs or some album named Music To Listen To Music By...”
Randall Jarrell (1914–1965) said by 1965 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I kind of feel that it's more about music itself. Not that we didn't do that before. It's putting more emphasis on big orchestra, music, musicians, singers, songs. We want to do music at the purest as possible, like the old days I guess. So if it's a concept .”
Celine Dion (born 1968) first seen 2010 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: One-on-One with Celine Dion; Interview With Kathy Ireland CNN ( December 22, 2010).
“Green wind from the green-gold branches, what is the song you bring? What are all songs for me, now, who no more care to sing? Deep in the heart of Summer, sweet is life to me still, But my heart is a lonely hunter that hunts on a lonely hill.”
William Sharp (writer) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Sweeter than any sung My songs that found no tongue; Nobler than any fact My wish that failed of act. Others shall sing the song, Others shall right the wrong,— Finish what I begin, And all I fail of win.”
John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892) said by 1892 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: My Triumph, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919)
“I first listen to someone who speaks the language and who reads the lyrics to me. I pay great attention to pronunciation. Once I hear the words spoken, I write the song lines phonetically in Hindi and then sing. By the grace of god, my songs in other languages – including Bengali – have been appreciated. People say they are good and the words have been correctly pronounced.”
Lata Mangeshkar (1929–2022) said by 2022 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source