Jimmy Cliff Quotes

People always ask me 'do you think there should be more bands doing political music?' and I say 'absolutely not.'

I personally think artists should criticize the government as much as possible since, unlike politicians, they do not have to obtain votes.

The only duty an artist has is in the quality of the art. There is no moral obligation to denounce. An artist confronted with a tremendous injustice sometimes feels inclined to say something. Denouncing the situation is the artist's choice.

The time-honored role of the artist [is] to speak truth to power.

Silence the artist and you have silenced the most articulate voice the people have.

I don't believe in censorship, but I do believe that an artist has to take some moral responsibility for what he or she is putting out there.

We have to give our opinion, we have to say something, or we are a part of it. As an artist I am forced to say something.

Artists have always been the front line; that's part of our responsibility. But a lot of the big actors come out, they get slammed, and then they retreat.

If artists cannot speak up for human dignity or rights, then who else will do it?

Art like life, should be free, since both are experimental.

I kind of think that artists throughout history, poets throughout history have been criticized for sharing what's on people's minds and I don't think it's any different now.

All great questions must be raised by great voices, and the greatest voice is the voice of the people - speaking out - in prose, or painting or poetry or music; speaking out - in homes and halls, streets and farms, courts and cafes - let that voice speak and the stillness you hear will be the gratitude of mankind.

We as visual artists need to continue to be renegades and say, "Yes I am here to do a project, but what is the social service?"

Expression and the right to express is vital, anyone can be artistic.

It may be said that artist and censor differ in this wise: that the first is a decent mind in an indecent body and that the second is an indecent mind in a decent body.

In a world that has ceased to believe in sin, the artist is responsible for the preaching.

As artists, it’s our job to delve into the uncomfortable, the difficult and the challenging.

You really can't be a good artist if you can't say what you really feel. And people may be offended, but, you know, that's how you feel, and that is your right, and that is your gift as well.

The conflict between art and politics... cannot and must not be solved.

Freedom of expression is a very essential condition for me to make any art. Also, it is an essential value for my life. I have to protect this right and also to fight for the possibility.

Artists put as much vitality and delight into their saintliness and escape out as most men do their escapes into similar places from respectable existence.

Art is the set of wings to carry you out of your own entanglement.

I love being part of a project that imparts a positive message, is somehow educational or enlightening, helps to bridge differences, or inspires viewers in some way. I believe a lot of artists become activists because we rely on and value the freedom of expression and so we want to protect it.

It's sometimes hard to talk about politics and art. Obviously, I have my core beliefs, but I think art is best when it's troublesome and pushes against stuff.

The only way artists can do things is to do it for themselves. Trying to second guess what the public wants or likes is kind of a fool's game.