--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Atlanta, in itself, is its own living…" description: "\"Atlanta, in itself, is its own living, breathing thing.\" — Brian Tyree Henry" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8b/brian-tyree-henry-8020_atlanta_atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-brea_1450731.jpg" --- # Atlanta, in itself, is its own living, breathing thing. ![“Atlanta, in itself, is its own living, breathing thing.” quote by Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8b/brian-tyree-henry-8020_atlanta_atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-brea_1450731.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8b/brian-tyree-henry-8020_atlanta_atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-brea_1450731.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8b/brian-tyree-henry-8020_atlanta_atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-brea_1450731.jpg) > “Atlanta, in itself, is its own living, breathing thing.” [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The city is portrayed as a living entity, emphasizing its dynamic and organic nature. **In simple terms:** Atlanta feels like a living, breathing organism. Key Takeaway Observe how a city’s culture shapes its identity. Themes urban life culture identity environment Mood reflective poetic observational Type descriptive metaphorical literary When to use this quote - travel writing - urban studies - creative nonfiction - documentary film Key Concepts city as organism metaphor social fabric Questions to Reflect On - How does a city’s culture influence its residents? - In what ways can a city feel alive? A Different Perspective Cities are not static; they evolve with their inhabitants. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atlanta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atlanta/) [Breathing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ## Related quotes > [America has to be not just an idea but a living, breathing thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-i-am/america-has-to-be-not-just-an-idea-but-a-living-breathing-thing/) [will.i.am](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-i-am/) > [It's a living, breathing thing, acting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-langella/it-s-a-living-breathing-thing-acting/) [Frank Langella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-langella/) > [“I could actually see LOVE—not words, not an emotion, not an abstract concept or a subjective state of mind, but a living, breathing thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffanie-debartolo/i-could-actually-see-love-not-words-not-an-emotion-not-an-abstract/) [Tiffanie DeBartolo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffanie-debartolo/) > [My worry is that opera will become an historic art form as opposed to a living, breathing thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-fleming/my-worry-is-that-opera-will-become-an-historic-art-form-as-opposed-to/) [Renee Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-fleming/) > [“be softer with you. you are a breathing thing. a memory to someone. a home to a life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nayyirah-waheed/be-softer-with-you-you-are-a-breathing-thing-a-memory-to-someone-a/) [Nayyirah Waheed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nayyirah-waheed/) > [Keep on living, Keep on breathing, Even when you don't believe it. Keep on climbing, Keep on reaching, Even when this world can't see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iggy-azalea/keep-on-living-keep-on-breathing-even-when-you-don-t-believe-it-keep/) [Iggy Azalea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iggy-azalea/) > [Living is not breathing but doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/living-is-not-breathing-but-doing/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [Just because you are living and breathing doesnt mean you are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/just-because-you-are-living-and-breathing-doesnt-mean-you-are-alive/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Dad is and always will be my living, breathing superhero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bindi-irwin/dad-is-and-always-will-be-my-living-breathing-superhero/) [Bindi Irwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bindi-irwin/) > [Compassion is a living, breathing, organic emotion that vibrates through you and links you to those around you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/compassion-is-a-living-breathing-organic-emotion-that-vibrates/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [It's not getting from A to B. It's not the beginning or the destination that counts. It's the ride in between...This train is alive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/it-s-not-getting-from-a-to-b-it-s-not-the-beginning-or-the/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [Venus is a walking, living, breathing legend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bianca-andreescu/venus-is-a-walking-living-breathing-legend/) [Bianca Andreescu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bianca-andreescu/) > [Love should be as natural as living and breathing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/love-should-be-as-natural-as-living-and-breathing/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [I think theater is more about living and breathing, versus TV, which can vary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mullally/i-think-theater-is-more-about-living-and-breathing-versus-tv-which/) [Megan Mullally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mullally/) > [I like finishing a movie and having this living, breathing thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-cain/i-like-finishing-a-movie-and-having-this-living-breathing-thing/) [Dean Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-cain/) ## More by Brian Tyree Henry > [Sometimes, you need someone to believe in you when you don't believe in yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/sometimes-you-need-someone-to-believe-in-you-when-you-don-t-believe/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [You see the Paper Bois - easy. Personas are easy to touch and see and digest. But you don't get the chance to really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/you-see-the-paper-bois-easy-personas-are-easy-to-touch-and-see-and/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [I have been the hugest HBO fan since I was 3, watching programming that I had no business watching as a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/i-have-been-the-hugest-hbo-fan-since-i-was-3-watching-programming/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [My father had one of the biggest vinyl collections I've ever seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/my-father-had-one-of-the-biggest-vinyl-collections-i-ve-ever-seen/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [This is the city that kind of formulated who I am. And, not only that, but to be black in Atlanta is one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/this-is-the-city-that-kind-of-formulated-who-i-am-and-not-only-that/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [I never really thought about what kind of career I wanted to map out for myself. I just wanted to do work that spoke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/i-never-really-thought-about-what-kind-of-career-i-wanted-to-map-out/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [The projects that I've been fortunate enough to do are all projects where I followed my heart. I didn't follow the money or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/the-projects-that-i-ve-been-fortunate-enough-to-do-are-all-projects/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [After my mother and father separated when I was 5, my mother moved to Washington, D.C., and my father remained in North Carolina. Later,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/after-my-mother-and-father-separated-when-i-was-5-my-mother-moved-to/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [I dare somebody to go to Atlanta and not have a good time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/i-dare-somebody-to-go-to-atlanta-and-not-have-a-good-time/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [Really trying to find the people who really ride for you and are down for you, that's hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/really-trying-to-find-the-people-who-really-ride-for-you-and-are-down/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [Acting really started for me because I was in a house full of adults. They never shielded their lives from me. They were adults…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/acting-really-started-for-me-because-i-was-in-a-house-full-of-adults/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [I'm a huge pin collector.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/i-m-a-huge-pin-collector/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > ['Atlanta' is really trying to put that out there: these are just the lives of these people in this city, and this city is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/atlanta-is-really-trying-to-put-that-out-there-these-are-just-the/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [Life should be art, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/life-should-be-art-right/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) > [Hip-hop is not about pretense. You can be missing an eye; you can have an ice-cream cone in your face; you can run around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/hip-hop-is-not-about-pretense-you-can-be-missing-an-eye-you-can-have/) [Brian Tyree Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) [Explore all 85 Brian Tyree Henry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/) ## More Atlanta quotes > [I never thought I'd be on the cover of the 'Atlanta Journal' unless I killed someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-robinson/i-never-thought-i-d-be-on-the-cover-of-the-atlanta-journal-unless-i/) [Chris Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-robinson/) > [We are creating the new Atlanta, along with Rich Homie Quan and Young Thug. We bring the spaghetti, put it in the bowl, mix…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quavo/we-are-creating-the-new-atlanta-along-with-rich-homie-quan-and-young/) [Quavo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quavo/) > [I'm an Atlanta guy. I think Philly knows that. But I've adopted Philly as my second home, and they've embraced me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-williams/i-m-an-atlanta-guy-i-think-philly-knows-that-but-i-ve-adopted-philly/) [Lou Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-williams/) > [When Olympic decathlon gold medalist Bruce Jenner asked a roomful of Olympic hopefuls if they had a list of written goals, every one raised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-canfield/when-olympic-decathlon-gold-medalist-bruce-jenner-asked-a-roomful-of/) [Jack Canfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-canfield/) > [If you go to Atlanta, the first question people ask you is, "What's your business?" In Macon they ask, "Where do you go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-berendt/if-you-go-to-atlanta-the-first-question-people-ask-you-is-what-s-your/) [John Berendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-berendt/) > [It took a qualified wizard to detect a summoning in progress. It required only a half-literate idiot with a twitch of power and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/it-took-a-qualified-wizard-to-detect-a-summoning-in-progress-it/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [I'm very appreciative to the people of Atlanta, forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-horford/i-m-very-appreciative-to-the-people-of-atlanta-forever/) [Al Horford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-horford/) > [I'm a southern girl, and I grew up with this slightly schizophrenic upbringing where I bounced back and forth between Atlanta, Georgia, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-myracle/i-m-a-southern-girl-and-i-grew-up-with-this-slightly-schizophrenic/) [Lauren Myracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-myracle/) > [I was a news anchor in Macon for a year and a half, and a news reporter for exactly one year in Spartanburg before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-johnson-jr/i-was-a-news-anchor-in-macon-for-a-year-and-a-half-and-a-news/) [Ernie Johnson Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-johnson-jr/) > [In his study of Atlanta over the last 60 years, Kevin Kruse convincingly describes the critical connections between race, Sun Belt suburbanization, the rise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-carter/in-his-study-of-atlanta-over-the-last-60-years-kevin-kruse/) Dan Carter > [Atlanta is Exhibit A in my belief that the marriage between hip-hop and sports is a failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/atlanta-is-exhibit-a-in-my-belief-that-the-marriage-between-hip-hop/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Atlanta was a welcoming presence for a lot of artists; they called it 'the Mecca of the South.' I got to see the Negro…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/latanya-richardson/atlanta-was-a-welcoming-presence-for-a-lot-of-artists-they-called-it/) [LaTanya Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/latanya-richardson/) > [I can't be calm when I drive through sections of Atlanta that look more like Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, than America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-mckinney/i-can-t-be-calm-when-i-drive-through-sections-of-atlanta-that-look/) [Cynthia McKinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-mckinney/) > [Coming from the south side of Atlanta, Georgia, everyone has a chip on their shoulder. That's how competitive it is. It makes athletes great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-coleman/coming-from-the-south-side-of-atlanta-georgia-everyone-has-a-chip-on/) [Christian Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-coleman/) > [I think it's important for artists to work together. It's great for fans to see, like, Ludacris came out to our show in Atlanta…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-aldean/i-think-it-s-important-for-artists-to-work-together-it-s-great-for/) [Jason Aldean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-aldean/) [Browse all 416 Atlanta quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atlanta/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Atlanta, in itself, is its own living, breathing thing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Brian Tyree Henry" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-breathing-thing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Atlanta" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-breathing-thing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8b/brian-tyree-henry-8020_atlanta_atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-brea_1450731.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8b/brian-tyree-henry-8020_atlanta_atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-brea_1450731.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8b/brian-tyree-henry-8020_atlanta_atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-brea_1450731.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Atlanta, in itself, is its own living, breathing thing.” — Brian Tyree Henry", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Brian Tyree Henry", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tyree-henry/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Atlanta, in itself, is its own...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-breathing-thing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tyree-henry/atlanta-in-itself-is-its-own-living-breathing-thing/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```