Quotes By Michael Franti

My parents said sticks and stones will break your bones but names will never hurt you. But I always felt a sense of exhilaration after a fight; it was the names that really hurt me.

Everyone deserves music.

Power to the peaceful.

Through music I either tame my demons or unleash them and allow them to be what they are. I don't want the music to be about provocation, I want the music to bring you to a place where you feel at home.

When I first started out, I thought it was enough to make an angry song that pointed out the problems of the world.

During my travels in Iraq, Israel, Gaza, Brazil, Indonesia, Japan, Europe and all over the United States, I have seen and heard the voices of people who want change. They want the stabilization of the economy, education and healthcare for all, renewable energy and an environmental vision with an eye on generations to come.

Playing on the streets of Iraq, or in Israel or the Gaza strip, I'd sing angry protest songs against war. People would say, 'Make us clap, make us dance, and laugh and sing.' It really made me think about the importance of happy music.

I don't know if music can change the world overnight but I know that music can help someone make it through a difficult night.

Every single soul is a poem.

There are so many things to be worried about, and I wanted to make a record that people could put on, and it would lift them up the way the sun did for me each day.

I think my soul is intact, but my methods of reaching people are completely different.

If we do not change our negative habits toward climate change, we can count on worldwide disruptions in food production, resulting in mass migration, refugee crises and increased conflict over scarce natural resources like water and farm land. This is a recipe for major security problems.

Today we are in a war against war - music is our power.

Investing now in safe-guarding people by helping them to adapt to climate change, will help save money and lives while building resilience.

No life's worth more than any other, no sister worth less than any brother.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do is just to stay human.

We can bomb the world to pieces, but we can't bomb it into peace.

Music has the power to bring people together like no other art form.

The world can't have a global solution to climate change with U.S. action alone; and the world can't have a global solution without U.S. action.

All the freaky people make the beauty of the world.