I do not purport to be a professional politician.

There's a view in Russian society that there are 'male professions' and 'female professions.' The women should be looking after the home and children. It makes me sad. But the only thing you can do is fight it.

You know, in Russia we say there are three things you can't choose: your parents, your gender and your president.

My burden is my past as a TV star. But, you know, pasts cannot be a life sentence.

Originals are nonconformists, people who not only have new ideas but take action to champion them. They are people who stand out and speak up. Originals drive creativity and change in the world. They're the people you want to bet on.

Every once in a while, we can touch somebody's life in a way just by writing a melody or writing some music, which is always really special.

Think of an economy where people could be an artist or a photographer or a writer without worrying about keeping their day job in order to have health insurance.

Some movies work really well with music from Bach or Mahler that existed long before the film, so music has its own autonomy.