Martin Lawrence Quotes

It's warts and all in my songs, and I think that's why people can relate to them.

In stand-up it really helps to play yourself and talk about your own feelings. You cannot fail to be original if you're just talking about what you think about X, Y and Z. Unless you've got a twin brother who's also a stand-up.

Don't imitate. Write what you know about, that has to be your goal.

Write what you know.

The writing process really became natural when it was real and from my heart, and I was exposed.

I feel like one of my strengths is writing about stories that are unique to me but somehow relate with everyone, and the one thing I've found is that if you make a song wholly unique to you, then you don't have to compete with everybody, because nobody else can make a song like you.

I believe that my work has been well-received because it is authentic. All people really want are authenticity and truth.

The more you do speak from the heart, rather than thumping the agenda, people will listen or relate or open themselves up more.

I'm obviously really opinionated, but as a producer, you don't necessarily want the person you're working with to try to impress you - you want them to just be themselves.

I realized that if you're trying to reach an audience, being as subjective as possible and really trying to write from something genuine is the way to go. Really it's mostly from my own process, my own experience.

Weirdly enough, I don't like to pretend. I try to use things in me, and translate them into the situation and the characters, so it always needs to run through my own veins.

The kind of sermon which is likely to break the hearer's heart is that which first has broken the preacher's heart, and the sermon which is likely to reach the heart of the hearer is the one which has come straight from the heart of the preacher.

I just tend to admire people who go for what they believe in, like David Lynch for example, and just say what goes through their heads, and are not afraid of people not accepting them. I have no respect for people who deliberately try to be weird to attract attention, but if that's who you honestly are, you shouldn't try to "normalize yourself". It's a fine line.

I show them the funny part, the silly part, the laughing part, the crazy part and then the really deep, deep part where I'm talking from my heart to these people. Because I've been through everything they've been through.

My favorite comedians are basically themselves onstage.

If I'm not writing songs about things I've actually been through, it ruins the idea of making music to me.

I don't like to be entertaining. I don't like the feeling of being entertaining. If there was a musical or a comedy that was not just for entertainment but was rooted in something I could relate to on a real level, then I think I would do it.

I don't really have a gimmick or a 'thing.' I'm one of the few artists who gets to be himself every day.

I'll never sing something that I've never been through. So even if I didn't write it, I have to have at least experienced it.

I write about what I know.

Someone gave me a piece of advice once, my first manager Lucien Hold. He said, 'If you do stand-up about your own life, no one can steal it.' I always thought that was the best piece of advice.

Soul is about authenticity. Soul is about finding the things in your life that are real and pure.

I'm of the school 'Write what you know.' You can educate yourself, but the best writing usually comes from the heart.

If you show you're human and have something to say, people will connect with you.

The closer you can get to being personal, the better the work is, or the more interesting the work is.