“They're making a ton of money, and no one is getting a nickel.” — Ruben Blades Quote

They're making a ton of money, and no one is getting a nickel.

I really think that music itself, being one of the greatest possible vehicles for mass communication, should be probed to its extremes, to see how effective it can actually become, which is one of the reasons why I became also interested in presenting political points of view.

The first time I played was in Buenos Aires - was in 1983. The dictatorship was in position.

A lot of times you're just conditioned by what's around you.

So that I saw music as a way of documenting realities from the urban cities of Latin America.

Nobody talks about Shaq Thompson. I don't know what he is. He's like a nickel corner/linebacker.

We didn't know anything about publishing. The first go-around we didn't make a nickel.

My father had a piano that was a nickelodeon - put a nickel, and the roller would play.

If I had a nickel for every time I said 'Why me?' I'd have probably said 'Why me?' more often.

If I had a nickel for every time someone asked, 'When are you doing an album?' My career is way too transparent to do say, 'Guess what - I've got 16 tracks you've never heard!'