I do not speak the minds of others except to speak my own mind better.
To have my name said like, "Common and John Legend, Golden Globe nominees," is one of the greatest achievements I've ever had as an artist, as a person.
Whether the people in Haiti, the young kids in Chicago that [are] going through violence, or whether you're in Atlanta or L. A. or Europe - it's not even color barriers for me - I go to where I know there's a lot of turmoil and pain.
If the eyes are the window to your soul open eyes bring the cold.
My mom has obviously had a powerful influence on my life and her voice can describe certain things that I couldn't see in myself.
I wonder if these wack niggas realize they wack, And they the reason that my people say they tired of rap.
When you see people that lived their purpose and sacrificed, who are everyday people - teachers, sanitation workers, and just people from all walks of life - that said, "I'm standing up for what I believe in. I'm standing up for my community. " That reaffirms what you can do.
Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future.
Stupidity isn't punishable by death. If it was, there would be a hell of a population drop.
Happiness does not depend upon a full pocketbook, but upon a mind full of rich thoughts and a heart full of rich emotions.
Literature often gets taught nowadays as a record of the sins and shortcomings of the past. I see literature and the arts very differently: as essential to being human and to human progress, individual and collective.