Ray Charles — Quotes

“I was born with music inside me. Music was one of my parts, like my ribs, my kidneys, my liver, my heart. Like my blood.”

— Ray Charles · Ray Charles reflected on his lifelong relationship with music and how it was integral to his identity from childhood.

“Don't feel sorry for me. Just let me do what I do best and that's to play music and be something in life and accept the person that I am.”

— Ray Charles · Charles addressed public perception of his blindness, emphasizing his desire to be recognized for his talents rather than pitied for his disability.

“You got to have smack for breakfast to keep your musicians going all day. I could see where drugs were overtaking the music scene.”

— Ray Charles · Ray Charles spoke candidly about drug addiction in the jazz and R&B communities, drawing from his own struggles with heroin in the 1950s.

“I'm going to do my thing and I don't care what anybody thinks.”

— Ray Charles · Charles expressed his independent artistic philosophy when defending his decisions to cross genre boundaries and experiment with different musical styles.

“Success is having to do the same thing over and over again, until you get it right.”

— Ray Charles · Ray Charles discussed the work ethic and repetition required to achieve mastery in music performance and composition.

“The only thing I can't do is see, but I can do everything else.”

— Ray Charles · Charles asserted his capabilities and refused to accept limitations based on his blindness, which he lost at age six.

“Music to me is like breathing. I don't get tired of it.”

— Ray Charles · Ray Charles explained his inexhaustible passion for music during interviews about his prolific career spanning five decades.

“I'm a blind man. I got a handicap. But I've learned to see with my heart.”

— Ray Charles · Charles offered a philosophical reflection on overcoming his blindness and using his other senses and emotional intelligence to navigate life and create music.