Catholicism is not a soothing religion. It’s a painful religion. We’re all gluttons for punishment.

There are moments when I can’t believe I’m as old as I am. But I feel better physically than I did 10 years ago. I don’t think, Oh God, I’m missing something.

I suppose I sometimes used to act like I wasn’t a human being… Sometimes I look back at myself and remember things I used to say, or my hairstyle, and I cringe.

I stand for freedom of expression, doing what you believe in, and going after your dreams.

I always felt like I was a freak when I was growing up and that there was something wrong with me because I couldn’t fit in anywhere.

I think in the end, when you’re famous, people like to narrow you down to a few personality traits. I think I’ve just become this ambitious, say-whatever’s-on-her-mind, intimidating person. And that’s part of my personality, but it’s certainly not anywhere near the whole thing.

I’m tough, I’m ambitious, and I know exactly what I want. If that makes me a bitch, okay.

If any of you have seen my shows, you know that I don’t skimp on them and the same is true for the gym. We spend what it takes to make a globally first-class gym.

I’m not interested in being Wonder Woman in the delivery room. Give me drugs.

I go to Malawi twice a year. It’s where two of my children were adopted from, and I have a lot of projects there that I go and check up on and children who I look after. It’s sort of a commitment that I’ve made to this country and the hundreds of thousands of children there who have been orphaned by AIDS.

A lot of places I go are dangerous, like Tel Aviv or Rio, but that never stops me from going there and putting on a show. I have good security. I don’t worry about that.

Poor is the man whose pleasures depend on the permission of another.

Things were a lot simpler in Detroit. I didn’t care about anything but boyfriends.

In this business, my business, I get to meet all kinds of incredible people, fascinating people, glamorous people and sexy people and highly intellectual people. And you meet them and you go ‘interesting, interesting, interesting’. They’re interesting, but not very many people stop you in your tracks.

Catholicism is not a soothing religion. It’s a painful religion. We’re all gluttons for punishment.

My father was very strong. I don’t agree with a lot of the ways he brought me up. I don’t agree with a lot of his values, but he did have a lot of integrity, and if he told us not to do something, he didn’t do it either.

People hear the soul, black influence in my voice. I grew up listening to CKLW and all the black stations like WLBS.

I always thought I should be treated like a star.

Prince Charles is very relaxed at the table, throwing his salad around willy-nilly. I didn’t find him stiff at all.

But I love the idea – whether it’s in my work or where I live – exploring new frontier, and I like putting myself in strange places and trying to survive and figure things out and gather up an infrastructure. I like knowing that I could figure out a way to live anywhere.

If I was a girl again, I would like to be like my fans, I would like to be like Madonna.

I guess some people are brilliant enough to be brilliant on their own and never doubt anything and come up with fabulous things. But I think it’s good to get into arguments with people and have them say, ‘That sucks’ or ‘You’re crazy’ or ‘That’s cheesy”‘or ‘What do you think of this?’