I've worked in the studio with a lot of young girls, and they'll go, 'Oh, the label is telling me to take off my clothes, and I don't feel comfortable.' Well if you don't feel comfortable, don't do it.
Children are so talented. Little children, until about the age of 10 or 11, are just little artists. They need to be given the time and the space and the materials to do their work. That's all they need.
I don't think people are terribly interested in young artists who were doing interesting thing, but I don't think people are terribly interested in young artists.
A young person, or someone who's writing in a different way - in some ways you could say, eventually someone will find them. Eventually someone will hear them. But it's good a lot of young people persevere. Because sometimes you have to send something out a thousand times before anyone recognizes your value.
If you think about 2Pac, Biggie, and Nas, all of those guys were teenagers or in their early 20s when they got started. Everybody acts like young people have to be silly and lack perspective. Those guys had incredible perspective, and everything that they said was before 25 years old.
I would advise young artists to paint as they can, as long as they can, without being afraid of painting badly.
My real musical discovery started when I was 10 with Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5, and acts that I connected with because they were young when they were doing it, like me. Then I kind of came into my own a couple of years later; I found new artists that shaped my musical landscape. For instance, Kings of Leon played a big part in that.
When you're young and creative, you don't know how to channel all that creative energy, so sometimes it goes to the wrong places.
I mean, Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, I think the young kids sell lot of records. But for an older kind of artist, more of a sort of heritage, vintage type of artist, you have to think outside the box.
I chose to deal with the underdogs on '1 Train.' I could've got the biggest superstars in the rap game, but why do that when you can let the young boys shine?
I began collecting artwork as a way to help young artists to promote their work as well as to increase awareness of contemporary art among the younger generation.
I try to always motivate young kids who want to be singers or actors or whatever it is they want to be that anything is possible with hard work. It doesn't matter where you're from or what language you speak - as long as you work hard, you can achieve those goals.
Before, I was more concerned with getting on the radio, like many young artists.
It seems likely that many of the young who don't wait for others to call them artists, but simply announce that they are, don't have the patience to make art.
Anybody who loves country music loves gospel. Even they are competing with the same type of problem that I'm competing with. We older artists are competing with the new style of country, with their new modern style of gospel, with the young people.
I will give a proof to demonstrate with facts that there are no rules in painting and that oppression or servile obligation of making all study or follow the same path is a great impediment for the young who profess this very difficult art.
Many young painters would never have taken their pencils in hand if they could have felt, known, and understood, early enough, what really produced a master like Raphael.
You seldom hear any young artists in country music.
Artists are very young, and say, Um, ok, to these industry dudes.
My thing is, you have to let young artists be young artists.
We all kind of grew up together with Art Blakey because we all were young and he gave us a chance to write. We had to write something that was good and to sit up with a great guy like Art Blakey and watch him.
When you're first starting out, you want to keep making good movies. When you're young and you're black, you do a bad movie and you're through.
Many young artists, they look at the art world and think they can make a lot of money.
I was looking at making a shift in my career. I've been so blessed I'd like to be able to give that back. If I could find young artists, young performers I can nurture to have a career I would really like that.
The X Factor' was amazing because I like being a positive role model to young artists; that's what I believe in. If I can shed some light and give them some tips on how to believe in themselves and be more confident with their craft.
