"I'm not a R&B singer. I'm a classical musician."

"I'm not interested in making money. I'm interested in making music."

"The worst thing about that kind of prejudice is that while you feel hurt and angry and all the rest of it, it feeds you self-doubt. You start thinking, perhaps I am not good enough."

"I just want to play my music, and I want to be left alone."

"I'm not a jazz legend. I'm a classical legend."