Good character is more to be praised than outstanding talent. Most talents are, to some extent, a gift. Good character, by contrast, is not given to us. We have to build it, piece by piece - by thought, choice, courage, and determination.
The biggest mistake, in general, I've made, is to put too much of a weighting on someone's talent and not enough on their personality. And I've made that mistake several times. I think it actually matters whether somebody has a good heart, it really does. I've made the mistake of thinking that it's sometimes just about the brain.
Talent is a gift, but character is a choice.
People who make good music aren't necessarily nice people.
Talent is commonly developed at the expense of character.
Character is more important than talent.
It is unfortunate that superior talent and superior men are so seldom united.
The peril of every fine faculty is the delight of playing with it for pride. Talent is commonly developed at the expense of character, and the greater it grows, the more is the mischief. Talent is mistaken for genius, a dogma or system for truth, ambition for greatness, ingenuity for poetry, sensuality for art.
I love music and I love musicians. I separate them. I'm a big fan of Lily Allen's music, but I'm not a fan of her personality. I differentiate the two.
