A curated register of quotes from under-represented voices.

“ I won't be a rock star. I will be a legend. ”

— Freddie Mercury

“ It's an artist's duty to reflect the times in which we live. ”

— Nina Simone

“ Wherever we are, this is home. Wherever I go, I'll always be Puerto Rican. ”

— Bad Bunny, 2025

“ People are just afraid of things too much. Afraid of things that don't necessarily merit fear. ”

— Frank Ocean, 2012

“ I'll tell you what freedom is to me: no fear. ”

— Nina Simone

“ Small changes end up making a big difference. It's about being a lot nicer to each other. It's just saying, 'Treat people with kindness.' ”

— Harry Styles

“ I am Puerto Rican, I am Caribbean, and my music, my culture, my country's history run through my veins, from plena to reggaeton. ”

— Bad Bunny

“ You're trying to take all this misunderstanding and loathing, and you're trying to turn it into love, which is the wonderful thing that happens when you're trying to make music out of the rough, hard, bad things. ”

— Bruce Springsteen, 2018

“ I never thought of being blind as a disadvantage, and I never thought of being black as a disadvantage. I am what I am. I love me! ”

— Stevie Wonder, 2012

“ Everybody supports women until a woman's doing better than you. ”

— Sofia Isella, 2023

“ I can't wake you up. You can wake you up. I can't cure you. You can cure you. ”

— John Lennon, 1980

“ Growing up in the Western world, there are so many times where I'm like, Oh, I'm not white. My name is not that easy to say. I'm not as relatable as a white person. ”

— Rina Sawayama, 2020

“ For the longest time I was trying to be white and fit in, that's also fine at some points in your life, I had to do that to survive in certain spaces. ”

— Rina Sawayama, 2020

“ I think ageing is an extraordinary process whereby you become the person that you always should have been. ”

— David Bowie

“ My anxiety and depression have ruled my life for as long as I can remember and I never leave the house because of it. ”

— Kid Cudi, 2016

“ Ever since I could form coherent thoughts, I knew I was a girl trapped inside a boy's body. There was never any confusion in my mind. ”

— Jazz Jennings, 2016

“ Democracy is the best revenge. ”

— Benazir Bhutto, 2007

“ The money part also allows you freedom, freedom to speak out, freedom to make bold choices, freedom to maybe go against your federation. ”

— Megan Rapinoe, 2022

“ I shall dance all my life. ”

— Josephine Baker

“ I'm tired of being invisible. ”

— Sylvia Rivera

“ I raise up my voice, not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. ”

— Malala Yousafzai, 2013