"One day when I was twelve or thirteen, I was hanging out with some friends, and I heard T-Pain for the first time. Im…"

"I guess I was always looking beyond what was right in front of me. I wanted to listen and play music that wasn't the …"

"There was one place I really wanted to go, more than any other: New York City. Maybe it was from watching the Macy's …"

"Granddad smiled at me before he said anything. It was a smile he gave when he was worried about disappointing me. "It…"

"When I was growing up, I never thought much about living in San Antonio, or whether or not I liked it there. It was j…"

"Now, the funny thing about growing up in Texas is that people who aren't from there just assume we ride horses to sch…"

"I didn't take any of the social stuff at school that seriously. My main way of dealing with it was this: I was really…"

"I could tell from the comments posted on our music videos that they really liked my singing. Not long after that, I w…"

"A few days before the talent show, I went to a pep rally at school that also included a talent show. I really wanted …"

"There were some dark days in school. Some people still made fun of me for my videos. I tried to hold on to the positi…"