Justin Vernon Quotes

The Bee Gees were always heavily influenced by black music. As a songwriter, it's never been difficult to pick up on the changing styles of music out there, and soul has always been my favourite genre.

Soul music is soul music. It can be wrapped up in a neo soul package; it can be called hip-hop soul. But soul is soul, and it's been around; it will never go away.

I grew up listening to a lot of soul music, and a lot of folk music.

I prefer black music in general.

Darlin... be-bop is the music of the future.

I've never been into the typical R&B voice, with runs and bluesy sounding words. That doesn't suit me.

I wanted to bring the R&B flavor and other Westernized sounds to my music, because that's the type of music I grew up listening to.

As far as I'm concerned, blues and jazz are the great American contributions to music.

I believe that blues and jazz are the two uniquely American contributions into music.

I consider myself much more of a blues singer now.

Blues is a big part of rock and roll. The best rock and roll got its birth in the blues. You hear it in Little Richard and Chuck Berry.

I started learning everybody's riffs, from Donny Hathaway to Jeffrey Osborne to James Ingram. That helped me create my own style of singing.

Blues is such a dynamic and ever-changing system of music.

I love soul music.

I wouldn't call myself a jazz player or a blues player.

For a long time, soul music was maybe one of my favorite kinds of music.

I don't know why people call me a jazz singer, though I guess people associate me with jazz because I was raised in it, from way back. I'm not putting jazz down, but I'm not a jazz singer...I've recorded all kinds of music, but (to them) I'm either a jazz singer or a blues singer. I can't sing a blues – just a right-out blues – but I can put the blues in whatever I sing. I might sing 'Send In the Clowns' and I might stick a little bluesy part in it, or any song. What I want to do, music-wise, is all kinds of music that I like, and I like all kinds of music.

I'm making black music. That's the only outline for me, really. That's the only boundary to stay with. It's soul music. I'm going all out in those terms.

I don't think I ever modeled myself after a singer. I've more or less copied the styles of horn-tooters right from the start.

My production and songwriting and the environment around those vocals are not inspired by R&B at all.

I really liked Stevie Ray Vaughn, so hey - I tried to look like him.

I was a born rock n' roll sax player.

Prince got some Marvin Gaye and Jimi Hendrix and Sly in him, also, even Little Richard. He's a mixture of all those guys and Duke Ellington.

I think with me and the type of music that I'm trying to make, it's always going be soulful because I grew up listening to different types and variations of soulful melodies and jazz, but experimenting with different types of stylistic souls.

I just want to spearhead and lead a new style of New Orleans music.