"Growing up, I was like... two foot tall. I mean, I was so little, and here I was playing this trombone that when I stood up it was, like, two times my height." (VH1: Before They Were Rock Stars)

"When I was little, I wanted to be Gene Kelly. He sang and danced."

"I know that when I was born I pretty much was singing. My mom says I was singing before I could talk. I just know that I've always loved music and loved listening to music and performing."

"We never went on family vacations, we were too poor. A family vacation for us was leaving town and going to the mall. whoo, vacation!"

"I'm not fluent (in Spanish), but I studied it for five years. My mom used to speak it when I was little, so I thought it was going to be an easy credit to get. So, when somebody starts rattling off, I can understand a little bit."

"I failed (math) several times. I took algebra my freshman year and failed it...Then, my junior year, I took algebra II and failed that."

"I never did anything wrong in school, I was just blamed for everything." (fanatic)

"I started my college education majoring in theater, but then I branched off into music and psychology."

"I had to drop out of Rollins because of the group, I didn't have time to go to college and the group."

"In High school I played football, baseball and one year I ran track, I was in home economics my senior year because I needed an easy credit. And I ended up winning a cooking competition, which was so embarrassing, because I'm sitting there playing football and I won this home ec award, some kind of show award, like where we made this big presentation and we got to go to Columbus, Oh for the state districts and do this thing. Here I'm going with all these girls from home ec, and I'm like great! Hey, it's a way to pick up chicks."

"I was in a play one time and I had a lot of make-up on. I was dressed up like an old man, so I decided to play a trick on my mom. I went home and knocked on the door and told her I was the landlord and I come to evict her out of the apartment cause she didn't pay the rent. She said, 'That's very funny Chris, now get in the house.'"

"My mom is real supportive."

"Want a funnel cake grandma?" (MTV All Access)

"We all have stockings, so we always go for those first. We get all the little stuff out of the way and get ready for the big stuff, We always sit back and think about what Christmas is really all about. We know that it's not about the presents, it's not about hype, it's not about riding on the floats or watching parades. It's about Jesus and it's about giving. We sing Happy Birthday on Christmas, just so we get the feel that it's not about us."

"My mom said I was singing before I could even talk!"

"It's absurd to have gone from totally poor to totally rich. It's beyond absurd. I wake up in my house in the middle of the night and go, 'Whose house is this?' I just wish I could go back and talk to that kid who was poor and wearing dirty clothes and say, 'Dude, I know you don't have a phone right now, you don't have a car, and you've had to work since you were twelve to make rent, but don't worry about it. Some day you're gonna spend as much on rims as you do on rent.' " (Rolling Stone, July 2001)