Maverick Carter Quotes

The mantra I grew up with was that no matter where you came from, hard work and education could set you free.

From being a little girl in the projects, going through all of the mess that I was going through, to ending up at the Inauguration for the first African-American president, I'm speechless right now because I never thought I'd - I never ever - I couldn't even see that far. Even when I ended up in the music business, I couldn't see that.

I've sort of escaped my background, as people often do, through art and culture.

Growing up, I never imagined a girl from a border town could one day become a governor.

What I will not do is continue to perpetuate stereotypes. I'm the daughter of a maid; why do I have to also play a maid? My mom was a maid so I didn't have to be a maid.

I had to fight my whole life to break out of my circumstances. That's just part of my makeup.

That's one thing you Americans take for granted, you know? That you can grow up, you know, not so good circumstances, and you can move. Just because you are born in rural Arkansas, whatever, that doesn't define who you are.

I've been fighting since I was a child, fighting to get out of my circumstances.

It doesn't matter where you're from. You can be from the hood or the suburbs. You can be poor with no education or a college graduate. No matter your background, you can win.

I'm actually sort of shocked that I was able to get a medal in 2014 and really have any of the success I had before because as soon as I came out, it was like a whole new world for me, and I felt so free, so confident, that it's actually shocking that I was able to compete any other way.

Especially the young kids who don't have any guidance, just stuck on trying to be a tough guy or trying to be a gangster - there are different ways out there to better yourself. You just need the right guy out there to push you.

I grew up in a rural area. Books are what helped me transcend my circumstances.

Obviously, I have to enjoy all I have. People depend on you, and now I can look back at everything I've gone through to get here with a different perspective.

I never in my wildest dreams dreamt of being in a position like this, of having a platform like this, where I can really show the world - not just Africa, but the entire world, people in Asia, India, wherever - that your current situation doesn't have to determine your future.

I see I'm changing the game and opening doors for others, from my beginning from the east end of London. It's not a sob story; it made me the person I am today. It's seeing kids from any area or background you're from. There's a chance; you can make it.

It's about knowing yourself and what you're good at. Females, males - anyone can be anything they want to be.

I always said that if I had the platform and the opportunity to share my story and make it easier for others, I would - so that, in a way, I can be the role model that I was looking for as a kid.

Going back about 10 years ago, the only thing a black kid could do to get out of the ghetto was being a sports star. Now we can add music to that, which is a good achievement in itself.

I just really want to put the past behind me, because it makes me angry thinking about it. But it's also the reason I've made it this far in my career. It's like, built up in me. It's what I think about when I fight. My childhood.

The pain and the suffering that I went through made me an activist. It made me stronger; it made me more compassionate.

I had a pursuit different from others because they all came from downtown areas with money, but I didn't have any. All I wanted is to change my destiny with my own efforts.

I just really felt I had to help the community I came from. I know how hard it is to make it out of here.

Money was a big differentiator when I was growing up, but I made sure it doesn't stay that way.

You know, that's the thing that people sometimes miss, is the fact that those moments when you're at your relatively speaking, lowest, are the times when you can learn the most.

My graduation was an amazing moment for my family, my community. In my early childhood, we lived on a subsidized income, with government assistance - at one point when I was growing up, my mother was making $14,000 a year. Now I had made it out of the hood, so to speak.