I like to wear short-sleeved collared shirts and high-waist trousers with shiny shoes. And at night, when I’m playing, I’ll often wear suits. But it started with my uncle’s vintage clothes. – Leon Bridges
The first time I heard Sam Cooke was in the ‘Malcom X’ film. I was with my father, and that’s the first time I heard his song. I remember my father telling me the story of Sam Cooke. – Leon Bridges
The thought of me not having to clock in for a job anymore is something that I can’t really put into words, aside from ‘amazing’ and ‘awesome.’ – Leon Bridges
Fame and all that type of stuff is inevitable, but I’m very content having a good band with no negativity, and everyone is on the same page. – Leon Bridges
Dance really built my confidence on stage. I’m still a shy person. But I have a lot more confidence than I did when I started. – Leon Bridges
From the core, I’m a shy person, but when I’m on stage, I know how to put it aside. Of course, I’m not perfect, but I’ve definitely grown as far as being comfortable on stage. – Leon Bridges
I’m not trying to compete with any other revival soul acts. It’s just Leon Bridges, a kid from Fort Worth trying to be himself and give people hope. It’s great music to dance to and just love. – Leon Bridges
My mom was very religious. She might have let me buy records, but I assumed that she wouldn’t. – Leon Bridges
When I started writing, I just wanted to do something different and creative. I first thought neo-soul was a good pathway for me, so I tried that out but realized I didn’t want to be placed in that box. – Leon Bridges
People tell me they use my song ‘Coming Home’ at their weddings. My audience seems to range from young to old, and it’s cool when you really get to connect with all different people. – Leon Bridges
I believe that gospel is more than just a sound, it’s a way of life. I don’t really have any shame to talk about spirituality in my music. A lot of your favorite soul songs started out in gospel. – Leon Bridges
It’s kind of weird – I get shy when I’m around new people, still, even when I’m onstage. I come from not really wanting to be in lights or known or in front of people. – Leon Bridges
A lot of R&B cats are doing a lot of auto-tune. Tyrese went back to the basics. I love classic soul music and Ginuwine. Ginuwine and Usher laid the foundation back in the ’90s. There’s no one doing that anymore. – Leon Bridges
I never really thought about my music being universal. When I set out to write, it was just a feeling that felt good to me. I never thought about being able to reach everybody. – Leon Bridges
I remember hanging out at Starbucks. There were these older guys who would sit around and play Crosby, Stills & Nash songs. I was just so in love with music. I would just go hang out with them, and I would try to sing and harmonize with them. I didn’t even know the songs. – Leon Bridges
There are a lot of bands who would get really big in Fort Worth and play shows on a Friday night that everybody would come out to. But I’ve never been really big in my hometown. My shows would have 10 or 15 people at them. – Leon Bridges
Gospel music played a huge part of my life. I was too scared to audition for the choir, but through my own music, I was also able to find spirituality for myself. – Leon Bridges
I was 10 years old when I first heard Ginuwine. I remember being at a friend’s house, and the music video came on. I was just like, ‘What is that?’ I was just kind of drawn from there. – Leon Bridges
I wrote my first song, ‘Conversion’, to this little hip-hop instrumental. I went to an open-mic, plugged my iPod into the P.A., and sang over the beat. – Leon Bridges
My music is more than me writing a flashy soul song. They’re heartfelt songs about my family and true stories. I have also songs that aren’t personal, but just painting a picture. I don’t like being put under labels, but my music is going to continue to stay classic and timeless forever. – Leon Bridges
