I always paid attention to Lil Wayne - close attention. He's my idol. He's still my idol.
But then there was Hendrix, man. Jimi was really the last cat to freak me. Jimi was playing all the stuff I had in my head. I couldn't believe it, when I first heard him. Man, no one can ever do what he did with a guitar. No one can ever take his place.
I've loved Michael Jackson since the minute I was born. He's probably the most talented person ever. He was able to create such an amazing career and be probably the biggest star we've ever had.
You aspire to be as great as Michael Jackson is as an artist. I don't think any artist in pop, rock or hip-hop has ever done it any bigger than him. You know what I mean? He's the man.
That Mick Jagger, I feel sorry for him. After all these years he still can't get no satisfaction.
Jay-Z just got that longevity. He can put out anything at any time and everybody will love it. He'll never get old.
I used to be a pop singer; well, not used to be. I am an R&B singer. My emphasis was on Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan and Aretha Franklin.
I can't think of another artist who has a fan base as diverse, in that the ladies in their 70s at the 4-H club have the same collection of Johnny Cash records as the punk on the street in Amsterdam.
I think if my father was a truck driver, I would have wanted to share the beauty that was there. He just happens to be Johnny Cash.
Emmylou Harris is just the biggest influence of mine musically, her and Dolly Parton.
Iggy Pop looks right at me as he sings the line: 'America takes drugs in psychic defence'; only he changes 'America' to 'Scatlin', and defines us mair accurately in a single sentence than all the others have ever done.
I'd love to do Pat Benatar. Probably either 'Hit Me with Your Best Shot' or 'We Belong'.
I saw Jimi Hendrix - it must have been four times. And he was incomparable, and his legend lives on.
My biggest moments have been in Philly - I met Jay-Z and Beyonce in Philly, I did the Powerhouse in Philly.
Stevie Wonder was a big influence in my life.
I couldn't believe I was working with Michael Jackson. I thought, growing up as a kid, I thought Michael was a cartoon.
Swag defines an artist, period. Lil Wayne has his super-tattooed pierces and dreads swag. Jay-Z has his New York, grown man, Beyonce and 40/40 Club swag.
John Lennon was definitely my favorite Beatle, hands down.
The Beatles have always had a big effect on me.
I wasn't a Prince fan until I watched Purple Rain. When I watched that, it was one of my favorite movies of all time because it shows the life of an artist.
I'm a huge fan of R. Kelly's. He's a musical genius and probably the most prolific artist of the generation before mine.
I am the biggest Destiny's Child - Beyonce, Kelly, Michelle, all of them - fan in the world.
Tupac Shakur always wanted me to smoke weed with him, and I never did it, and I wish I did...That's my biggest regret.
Jimi Hendrix came from the blues, like me. We understood each other right away because of that. He was a great blues guitarist.
The last time I saw Elvis was when I played my second New Year's Eve show for him in 1970.
