I just believe in standing up for people and against discrimination. I consider myself an advocate for human rights.
— Kali Uchis
I always felt you could age with style and grace, or you could age in denial and hold on to issues and never push through.
I've always been very insecure and had a lot of self-doubt growing up. That was partially because of how I was raised.
My favourite 'stage' of Shakira was the brunette punk rock one, but she'll always have a special place in my heart, whatever she's doing.
I really love secondhand clothes. It's fun to turn them into something new.
I started making music by myself and figuring all of that on my own.
No one can decide what you should do, what course of action you should take to get where you wanna go, except for yourself.
Back in the day, I used to get really upset when people used to say that I didn't really make all my own things - like my art or my videos or whatever. I work really hard on everything, so it used to upset me when people would try to discredit me or say that I wouldn't have what I had without this person or that person.
I just know what I want for myself.
You can consciously make a difference with music. Bob Marley is one of those few artists that everyone can say that they love. He makes you feel good. It's very real.
When I got my MacBook, I started playing around with Garageband a lot. It was just a creative outlet. I put everything into it. I would skip all my classes just to be making my songs. Stuff like that made me feel good.
I never had any technical training. I never considered that, one day, I'm going to be Beyonce like a lot of girls aspire to be. It just kind of happened.
A lot of people don't give Virginia credit. Pharrell, Missy Elliott - a lot of people come from here.
I am very much an artist. I like painting and collaging.
When I was 18 or 19, I realized that everything I was doing was connected to music - writing, doing videos, making my clothes. It all centered around being an artist. So I released a mixtape that I made in my bedroom, and it ended up getting a lot more attention than I expected.
California feels like Colombia but with less threats. I don't have to be constantly looking over my shoulder.
I wasn't into social media at all, but when I decided I was going to put out my own music, I said, 'Okay, I'm just going to post it.' And that's when it started its rounds on the Internet, and people started to take an interest in me.
I'm Colombian. My family all have different complexions; some are people of color. I've been called every name by white people, been mocked for speaking in Spanish by white people.
While performing, I can't wear anything that I'm not going to be able to dance in or heels that don't have ankle support.
La India's voice is so powerful. It will give you life.
If you really want to get over someone or something in your life, I suggest you throw on some Ivy Queen. She will have you feeling extra bossy.
Sometimes I leave mayonnaise on the ends of my hair for a few hours while I'm writing; it's a really good moisturizer.
There's no particular method or course of action that I take in order to decide who I'm going to work with besides feeling complete and total respect and admiration for that artist.
When you're an artist, you're working, literally, for the sole purpose of art, and when people discredit you, it's probably the most disrespectful thing you can do.
I've never been pressed to be friends with everyone or be popular, even in school - I've always done my own thing.
As female artists, we have to be constantly criticized for the way that we look, the way that we dress, on a whole other level that men don't have to face.
I just like stuff that's raw, itself, real and genuine. I think that's the way art should be. That's the kind of stuff that people can connect to more.
The first time I did a show, I definitely didn't get any money. My friend just let me do this show. I was so nervous: my mic didn't work, and I was like, 'Urgh.' It was terrible. It was a dingy club off of the highway, but all these people came. It was packed out.
I think everybody needs to be more empathetic.
It's really not easy to be an artist. It's not easy to put yourself out there and be honest. I'm making things that are really happening to me, and it's not easy to share that with the world.
I used to love to look at cover art for vinyls.
I've always experimented with my look. Growing up, I thought it was so weird that people dressed alike and all bought the same things.
I'm constantly progressing. My style is changing every day.
You're always taught that the world is so competitive. You're taught that it's not very likely for you to become successful and that odds are you're going to be a struggling artist for the rest of your life.
I've always considered myself a person of color.
It's easy to just write about love, because everyone can relate, but I like variety.
Selena is a classic and timeless singer, and she really doesn't need an introduction. Her music is always good for the soul.
I'm into crystals and good energy and harnessing more. It's just like prayer. It helps you be grateful, think about good things, and keep that positive energy around you.
I don't really use any face products anymore because they make me break out. I like natural remedies. I usually put honey on my face. Sometimes, I put sugar in it so it's an exfoliant, too. I add raw coconut oil, which is good as a face wash and a moisturizer.
I don't operate on fear, and I don't let fear control me.
As an artist, you have to work hard for things that you can't really hold in your hand. I work not for money but for my career, to expand myself as an artist. Every video I make, it's not making me any money; it's just because I want to expand.
The constant pressure to be the perfect, ideal female - there's no such thing.
I like lowriders and music from the '50s and '60s. A lot of people assumed I was Mexican.
As a musician, you are all the music that you absorb into your mind; that just subconsciously connects.
I didn't want to go to school, because I wanted to be an artist, and they were never going to teach me art. None of my family had ever done that kind of stuff either.
I was really grateful for the photography classes, the art classes, and the video classes. They would let me skip all my other classes and stay and work on my projects.
I was always into music and stuff, so I would always make songs since I was little.
I was a very creative child. I played the saxophone and piano, and I was always writing poetry and stories, or drawing in my notebook. I just tried to express myself through as many creative outlets as possible. And in high school, I started to get really into photography and videography and would spend hours working on it.
Colombian culture has had a huge influence on me and taught me a different way of looking at things - I was always different from the people I went to school with, and I learned to embrace that.
A lot of people were getting million-dollar deals from music I felt was trash, because their videos were going viral. I wanted to put out music that had soul, because that's what was missing.
