September 27, 2004
Switchfoot's Jon Foreman: I'm Not a Religious Salesman
(Filed under: Spirituality)"My faith, I mean, that's such a personal aspect that a lot of times, of course it's going to come out through the song. But at the same time, I'm not a religious salesman. I feel like God doesn't really need a salesman, and what these songs are are simply my interactions with this life and learning. I guess the bottom line is the songs are really honest, you know what I mean. That faith is going to come through. If the listener is looking for it, that's definitely a part of it."
-Switchfoot frontman Jon Foreman, talking about the subtle references to faith in their The Beautiful Letdown album. Other Switchfoot albums include Learning to Breathe, New Way To Be Human, The Legend of Chin and The Early Years: 1997-2000, which collects their first three albums. The Live in San Diego DVD is also available. (Source: Asbury Park Press, September 24, 2004)
Other Switchfoot Quotables:
Tim Foreman on Christian Music
Jon Foreman on the Music Biz
Jon Foreman on "Dare You To Move"
Jon Foreman Owes U2
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:01 AM | Comments (6)
September 24, 2004
George Lucas: It's a Completely Different Movie
(Filed under: Movies)"Part of the fun for me is that one generation will have seen it backwards. ... [But] what's really important is the story, and the development of the characters. Now, once you get to IV, you know Darth Vader's the main character because you saw him [in previous movies]. So when Darth Vader walks in, you say, oh, my God. Now, when you come across Princess Leia, you know that's his daughter right away, and you think, does he know? No, he doesn't know. Or does he know? And when you cut down to the planet and see Luke, you go, oh, my God, that's Darth Vader's son, and Ben Kenobi has been waiting all this time to send him on his adventure. You're waiting for them to realize who everybody is. So it is a completely different movie."
-Star Wars creator George Lucas talking about how the next generation will see Star Wars differently. (Source: Entertainment Weekly, September 24, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:57 AM | Comments (1)
George Lucas on Redemption
(Filed under: Responsibility)"We all have to make up for our fathers, you know. Believe me, our kids are really going to have a job making up for the sins that are going on right now. That's a classic theme, you know -- if one generation succumbs, it's up to the next generation to redeem that generation."
-Star Wars creator George Lucas talking about the sins of the fathers and the redemption of children, something illustrated in the Star Wars saga with Darth Vader. (Source: Entertainment Weekly, September 24, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:53 AM
Mark Hamill Embraces the Nerd Side
(Filed under: Off-beat)''I have a nerd soul and I'm embracing it.''
-Mark Hamill (yes, the Luke Skywalker guy), speaking of his current exploits directing the mockumentary Comic Book: The Movie and his Fort Franny project, a kids' show mixing animation and puppets. (Source: Entertainment Weekly, September 24, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:38 AM
Lenny Kravitz is a Work in Progress
(Filed under: Spirituality)"I was going through a depression. But you know, you work it out, you deal with it, you figure out and I'm here now and I'm great. ... This album is about getting through all that. Feeling spiritually reborn, musically reborn, mentally reborn, just getting through. ... People are people. It doesn't matter what you've got or what position you're in, we all have issues in life, spiritual battles ... all kinds of things that need to be nurtured. ... I'm a perfectionist and very hard on myself -- constantly standing outside of myself and looking and critiquing and judging, and sometimes you've gotta just ease up. That's the part about learning to love yourself. We're all a work in progress."
-Rocker Lenny Kravitz talking about his new album Baptism. (Source: CNN.com, September 23, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:24 AM
September 21, 2004
Amy Lee of Evanescence on Cracker-box Idols
(Filed under: Appearance)"My little sister was really getting into these, I don't want to offend anyone, but like really fake, cheesy, slutty female cracker-box idols, and it really pissed me off. She started dressing like them and she was like 8 years old. So I gave her the talk and I wrote a song. ... It's kind of about exposing that it's fake. And the video's more along the lines of exposing the real behind-the-scenes [lives] of some of these people. It's basically showing the glamorous lifestyle and the depressed, selfish misery behind it. It's like beating a dead horse at this point, but at the time Britney Spears was just coming out. But I still think it's relevant."
-Amy Lee of Evanescence, talking about the song "Everybody's Fool" from their album Fallen. (Source: MTV.com, June 10, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:48 PM | Comments (2)
M. Night Shyamalan's Aspiration
(Filed under: Inspiration)"My biggest fear in life is to be average."
-M. Night Shyamalan, writer and director of Sixth Sense and Signs. (Source: The Christian Science Monitor, July 28, 2004 quoting The Philadelphia Inquirer)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:40 PM
M. Night Shyamalan on Faith
(Filed under: Spirituality)"It's something somewhat blurred in the line between believing in magic and believing in something spiritual. That idea of faith is really cool... . And it's a nice thing to keep saying, 'OK, I'm going to tell you another parable about faith.'"
-M. Night Shyamalan, writer and director of Sixth Sense and Signs. (Source: The Christian Science Monitor, July 28, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:34 PM
Will Smith on Friends
(Filed under: Relationships)"The best thing that anybody ever said to me is that you’re only as good as the people you associate with. Look at the five friends that you spend the most time with—that’s who you are."
-Rapper/actor Will Smith (Source: Teen People, August 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:20 PM
Henry Garza of Los Lonely Boys on "Heaven"
(Filed under: Spirituality)“I got down on my knees and started crying and started praying, and the good Lord told me to start writing it down.”
-Los Lonely Boys guitarist Henry Garza talking about the inspiration for their hit song “Heaven,” from their self-titled album. (Source: Rolling Stone, September 2, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:09 PM
Switchfoot's Jon Foreman on "Dare You to Move"
(Filed under: Inspiration)"It's me talking to myself and I think a lot of times I feel stagnant and stuck in the same place. And 'Dare You to Move' is kind of a song for myself to get me up and get me moving and tackling a new part of life. ... Two friends of mine have quit their jobs because of that song. They're like, 'I quit my job the other week because I heard that song. Just decided it was time to move on.' So I guess that's good."
-Jon Foreman, lead singer of Switchfoot, talking about the band's latest single from their album Beautiful Letdown. Other Switchfoot albums include Learning to Breathe, New Way To Be Human, The Legend of Chin and The Early Years: 1997-2000, which collects their first three albums. The Live in San Diego DVD is also available. (Source: MTV.com, September 20, 2004)
Other Switchfoot Quotables:
Tim Foreman on Christian Music
Jon Foreman on the Music Biz
Jon Foreman: I'm Not a Religious Salesman
Jon Foreman Owes U2
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 8:39 AM | Comments (7)
September 14, 2004
George Lucas on Failure
(Filed under: Artistry)"I've earned the right to be a failure and not be making mega-hits anymore."
-George Lucas, talking about being able to return to making the kind of movies he wants to make, like recent re-release THX 1138, regardless of their commercial success. (Source: CNN.com, September 13, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 11:39 AM
September 6, 2004
Ellen DeGeneres on God's House
(Filed under: Spirituality)"There's a coffee table with two magazines -- Teen People and Guns & Ammo. And there are pictures of Jesus everywhere. A picture of Jesus on a pony. A picture of Jesus with a T-shirt that says, 'My parents created the universe and all I got was this lousy T-shirt.'"
-Ellen Degeneres, who was recently cast as God in a remake of the 1977 George Burns film Oh, God!. (Source: Time, September 6, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:15 AM
September 5, 2004
Pamela Anderson on Giving
(Filed under: Spirituality)"If I refuse one of them I'd be like, 'Oh my God. What if that was Jesus?'"
-Former Baywatch star Pamela Anderson explaining why she always gives money to the poor. (Source: Contactmusic.com, August 29, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 11:43 PM | Comments (1)
September 1, 2004
Kanye West's "Jesus Walks"
(Filed under: Spirituality)"'Jesus Walks' talks about how you can rap about anything, but if you talk about Jesus, [radio and club DJs] won't play it. It talks about my relationship with him, [how I'm] trying to live a secular life but still have God in my life. I feel like I'm expressing a lot which the regular person is going through."
-Kanye West talking about his surprise hit "Jesus Walks" from the album College Dropout. (Soucre: MTV.com, July 19, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 3:51 PM
Mase on Standards
(Filed under: Artistry)"With all the money and the wealth, you have to have something to hold, to keep you grounded. Not really to preach to people, but you need that substance to keep you grounded."
-Rapper-turned-minister Mason "Mase" Betha talking about his Welcome Back album and its positive message. (Soucre: MTV.com, July 19, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 3:48 PM
P. Diddy on Kanye West's "Jesus Walks"
(Filed under: Spirituality)"I think that a lot of times when you're talking about God or Jesus, people get intimidated. The way Kanye did it, he made the record so hot that they can't front on it. It wasn't about the lyrical content; it was undeniable. Then, because [the record] was blessed to be a hit, you're forced to deal with the power of God and the record is going to touch you. You can't escape it. 'Best Friend' was definitely one of the first records, but to be honest, 'Jesus Walks' is just a hotter record. It's a rap record about Jesus [that] young men and women can understand, instead of you pushing it down their throats. You hit them with that heat and they understood it."
-P. Diddy talking about the success of Kanye West's "Jesus Walks" in relation to his 1999 song "Best Friend," about his relationship with God. (Soucre: MTV.com, July 19, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 3:42 PM
P. Diddy on God in Hip-hop
(Filed under: Spirituality)"I always relate hip-hop to our old Negro spirituals. They were sung in the cotton fields to help us get by, to help us not kill ourselves by going crazy [under] the worst oppression in the world. The music, the soulfulness, the spiritualness expressed in song helped us to get through another day. That's the same impact hip-hop has had on this generation. People could try to undermine it, but it's honestly the truth. Hip-hop has helped us make it through our life in the inner cities."
-P. Diddy talking about the emerging spirituality prevalent in hip-hop today. (Soucre: MTV.com, July 19, 2004)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 3:40 PM | Comments (1)