I didn't think I had a voice at all, and I still think of myself as an interpreter of songs more than a singer. I thought it was too deep; people thought I was a man. I had a very strong Jamaican accent, too; the accent really messed me up for auditions.
— Grace Jones
I go feminine, I go masculine. I am both, actually. I think the male side is a bit stronger in me, and I have to tone it down sometimes. I'm not like a normal woman, that's for sure.
We're not perfect; we all have things that people might not like to see, and I like to show my faults.
I don't collaborate. You're born alone, you die alone, you get on stage alone.
You can't expect your children to be perfect.
In the Seventies and Eighties we all had our fun, and now and then we went really too far. But, ultimately, it required a certain amount of clear thinking, a lot of hard work and good make-up to be accepted as a freak.
When I was modelling, I spent half my life staring at thousands of perfect reflections. It got to a stage where I was losing all sense of reality - so after I quit modelling, I took all the mirrors out of my house.
I love women, but I've never had a relationship with a woman.
When I perform on stage I become those male bullies, those dominators from my childhood. That's probably why it's so scary, because they scared me.
I've turned down millions of dollars to go on reality TV. It's an absolute no-go.
I came from a very strict background, and didn't hear any Jamaican music when I was growing up.
I loved all those classic figures from the '30s and '40s... Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Humphrey Bogart, Rita Hayworth. They had such glamour and style. I loved the movies of those times too - so much attention paid to details, lights, clothing, the way the studios would develop talent.
I don't think 'pop' should mean that you had no talent.
Women and men grow up with both sexes. Our mothers and fathers mean a lot to us, so it's just a question of finding a balance between their influences. I've found mine. And it tends to be more on the male side. I mean male side the way we understand it in the West.
I like to isolate myself when I work because I end up losing my voice by doing interviews all day.
Use, don't abuse.
I am an actress first, a singer second.
I'm not a rock star; I'm a soft person.
I don't like people who hide things.
I'm too vain, one of my biggest sins, but it saved me; I can see what excess does.
My dad's family were political and he was always a theatrical creature, whereas my mum is really musical and her father was the touring pianist with Nat King Cole. My family was an explosive mixture of politics, religion and music - no wonder I turned out how I did.
I don't take the English press seriously at all because all they want is dirt... I hate them.
One creates oneself.
I don't like people who hide things. We're not perfect, we all have things that people might not like to see, and I like to show my faults.
Growing up in Jamaica, the Pentecostal church wasn't that fiery thing you might think. It was very British, very proper. Hymns. No dancing. Very quiet. Very fundamental.
I never do what anyone else is doing. I could walk away from music and become a farmer or do some crochet. The worst thing in life for me is to do something I'm not happy doing.
I believe in individuality, that everybody is special, and it's up to them to find that quality and let it live.
Most performers take themselves too seriously. They forget there is a difference between the characters they play on the screen or stage and themselves, but the public doesn't forget there is a difference. They see how silly it is if you try to be the same person all the time.
I just go with the flow, I follow the yellow brick road. I don't know where it's going to lead me, but I follow it.
I would have rebelled against parental authority, no matter what. When I was 15, I started painting my face and making my own clothes.
Everyone has to make their own decisions. I still believe in that. You just have to be able to accept the consequences without complaining.
Now when I enter a carriage, it almost empties. But there's always one brave enough to stay.
It was very painful combing my hair. My grand-uncle was a Pentecostal bishop, and he was very strict: our hair couldn't be permed or straightened. So I just cut it all off.
To be honest, my life is not really as way-out and myth-loaded as people like to portray it.
I was the only black girl at my junior high school. I had an afro, a Jamaican accent, I looked really old.
Rock n' roll can get quite overwhelming. You can get caught up in the cycle.
My father would have been made a bishop much earlier than he was had it not been for me and my image.
I've had more misrepresentations than I can handle, and people have told the wickedest lies about me. A lot of them have taken their frustrations out on me, and I don't like that because it can wound. Not necessarily me, but those around me. Journalists can be so bad.
I'm not as impatient as I used to be. I used to hit people if I didn't like what they were saying. Just lash out. 'Bam - shut up! Hahahah!' I was terrible.
When I started modelling, I'd raise my arms and it was all muscle and all the other models had nothing. Really, everybody thought I was a man. I don't have to do much to have muscles. It's just genetic.
I always thought that feminine, softer side was just too vulnerable to put out there, because then it's like you're opening up a door for everybody to come in, and you don't know who's going to come in that door.
My husband used to shout at my mother, 'What is wrong with your daughter? I'm married to a man.'
When you become such a strong personality in music, it's hard for people to accept you as a different character.
I like to think of myself as a positive person. Otherwise I wouldn't have had a child.
I never thought I was going to be a singer. That was an accident.
My mother was a champion high-jumper. My three brothers are basketball players. We've all been very athletic.
Models are there to look like mannequins, not like real people. Art and illusion are supposed to be fantasy.
