Quote

I was raised by strong women, and that DNA is in my daughter and wife.

My parents are very hard working people who did everything they could for their children. I have two brothers and they worked dog hard to give us an education and provide us with the most comfortable life possible. My dad provided for his family daily. So, yes, that is definitely in my DNA.

People are comprised of sets of DNA from each parent. If you looked at just the DNA from your father, it wouldn't tell you who you really are.

Knowing what your parents have gives you hints of things, but your genome is a totally unique combination of and interchange of DNA from your parents. There is no one else like you genetically.

For each gene in your genome, you quite often get a different version of that gene from your father and a different version from your mother. We need to study these relationships across a very large number of people.

My father and I made genetics history. We were the first African-Americans and the first father and son anywhere to have their genomes sequenced.

The more that I looked at DNA, the more I realized it was nature and nurture. It's how genes and your environment work together to produce the person you are.

My family are all storytellers, and I think I inherited a lot more of that gene than other people in my family. I guess I was fun to have around.

The family is inclusive of not just your genetic family, but the people that you meet along the way.

My father was raised with brothers, he was a football player and a boxer, he was a chief petty officer in the Navy, he was a man of his times.