"What happens is, when I perform, I'm somewhere else. I go back in time and get in touch with who I really am. I forget my troubles, my worries."

Time

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Thematic Reflection

This quotation examines the core nature of Time as articulated by Etta James. Within historical and literary traditions, reflections on Time provide actionable mental models, challenging individuals to evaluate personal ethics, self-discipline, and daily actions.

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About Etta James

Jamesetta Hawkins, known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer and songwriter. Starting her career in 1954, James frequently performed in Nashville's R&B clubs, collectively known in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s as the Chitlin' Circuit. She sang in various genres, including gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, rock and roll and soul and gained fame with hits such as "The Wallflower" (1955), "At Last" (1960), "Something's Got a Hold on Me" (1962), "Tell Mama" and "I'd Rather Go Blind". She faced a number of personal problems, including heroin addiction, severe physical abuse and incarceration, before making a musical comeback in the late 1980s with the album Seven Year Itch (1988).

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More by Etta James

"The only time that I am really truly happy - when I feel at my best - is when I'm on the stage."

— Etta James
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"When I sing for myself, I probably sing for anyone who has any kind of hurt, any kind of bad feelings, good feelings, ups and downs, highs and lows, that kind of thing."

— Etta James
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"Johnny Guitar... just one of my favorite singers of all time. I met him when we were both on the road with Johnny Otis in the '50s when I was a teenager. We traveled the country in a car together.I would hear him sing every night."

— Etta James
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"Jazz took too much discipline. You have to come in at the right place, which is different than me singing the blues, where I can sing, 'Oh, baby,' if there's a pause in the melody. With jazz, you better leave that space open, or put in something real cool."

— Etta James
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More about Time

"The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude."

— Oprah Winfrey
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"I don't even drink! I can't stand the taste of alcohol. Every New Year's Eve I try one drink and every time it makes me feel sick. So I don't touch booze - I'm always the designated driver."

— Kim Kardashian
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"It's really important to share the idea that being different might feel like a problem at the time, but ultimately diversity is a strength."

— Carson Kressley
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"I've always set my stories in places I know well. It frees me up to spend more imaginative time on the characters if I'm not worrying about the logistics."

— Kim Edwards
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