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I know how to be funny to black audiences.

I don't think I'm really so unique. If every black person looked at their life they would quickly discover that they have been influenced by every type of music prevalent in America.

I used to joke for years that I was a black man. I adopted the black culture, the black race. I married a black woman, and I had black kids. I always considered myself a 'brother.'

Just because I grew up a white guy in America doesn't mean that's the music of my life.

I think America concedes that true American music has sprung from the Negro.

People always say 'You do racial comedy.' And I don't, exactly. I do cultural comedy. Because race and culture are two different things. There's black people from America and then there's black people from Africa. Racially, they're the same; culturally, they're extremely different.

First of all, the music that people call Latin or Spanish is really African. So Black people need to get the credit for that.

I hate to say it but I hate black humor. I feel like a Klan member saying it, but it's just not funny.

I was trying to establish an identity in music, and black and white had nothing to do with it.

I'd be happy if people said that I did a little bit to raise the dignity and recognition of the greatness of African-American music.