"Apocalypse Now was one of the first films that I saw that showed film could be a malleable art form, something that could exist outside of a super-traditional three-act structure. Martin Sheen and his character are sort of wrestling with more than just trying to find courage, but also trying to find some reason for why he was there in the first place. Speaking to a lot of Vietnam vets, I know it’s especially prominent in the Black experience. Soldiers felt incredibly disenfranchised about Vietnam because they weren’t being respected back home, but expected to have the motivation to fight for their country. But looking at it even from Martin Sheen’s case, his character is white, but that was part of his motivation."

"King Kong was a musical from South Africa that had an all-black cast. It was a fusion of South African traditional music, soul and jazz. It was so powerful when I listened to it for all those nights. I fell in love with that musical, which was a very big part of my life. I think [I was drawn to] the authenticity of the voice of what people call world music or ethnic music coming from the earth, of the people, the hope and their struggle. South Africans are so strong with their emotions and I think Africa itself is an amazing, inspirational place for music, because they live and breathe it. It was for me, a connection with the soul."