"I have a few north stars that I point my children toward—shining examples of confident living. Alicia Keys is one of them. For decades I have been lit up, beckoned, awakened by the way she shows up in every part of her life: her womanhood, her artistry, her activism, her motherhood. Alicia’s freeing memoir More Myself is right on time, as more and more of us decide once and for all that we are ready to live our one fleeting life on our own terms."

"It was my mother's favourite song. He has one of the smoothest voices in music ever. There's a strange sort of reverb going on there that's also present in 'Blue Velvet' by Bobby Vinton. Subconsciously, some part of me wanted to emulate what my mother found to be romantic. Again at a young age, I found that this was romance. Here was what made the girls smile because he was a huge heart-throb as well. So that early crooning, soft romantic style was a blueprint for us early on. From time to time I dive into it, as it's one of the constellations that's always in the sky for me. In fact, it's always on the radio and played more than Britney Spears or Alicia Keys, but only on oldies stations."

"I love Alicia Keys - the voice, and the fact that she plays an instrument. The image of a woman being in control of her instrument - it's not often something we see in pop music. We need to play instruments. It's important for our daughters in the future. If you know how to compose, you're free. You can be more than just a singer. You can compose for movies, theatre. You've got more opportunities, more freedom. I do a lot of things as well as music. People call me for other things, different projects. You're part of things that men can do. Because most of the time, projects get given to whoever can play an instrument. People will call you if they like your work. It doesn't matter if you're a man or a woman. The fact that you play an instrument gives you more credibility to work on other things."