--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My identity has everything to do with me…" description: "\"My identity has everything to do with me and my instrument. It doesn't have to do with what production style I use, or how many people played on it, wh..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d4b/liz-phair-5104_grandiose_my-identity-has-everything-to-do-with-me_1165665.png" --- # My identity has everything to do with me and my… ![“My identity has everything to do with me and my instrument. It doesn't have to do with what production style I use, or how many people played on it, whether it's sparse or grandiose or whatever. And I'm social, frankly” quote by Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d4b/liz-phair-5104_grandiose_my-identity-has-everything-to-do-with-me_1165665.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d4b/liz-phair-5104_grandiose_my-identity-has-everything-to-do-with-me_1165665.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d4b/liz-phair-5104_grandiose_my-identity-has-everything-to-do-with-me_1165665.png) > “My identity has everything to do with me and my instrument. It doesn't have to do with what production style I use, or how many people played on it, whether it's sparse or grandiose or whatever. And I'm social, frankly” [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Identity is defined by the artist and their instrument, not by production choices or collaborators. **In simple terms:** Your identity ties to you and your tool, not style or others. Key Takeaway Focus on personal authenticity. Themes identity creativity authenticity Mood reflective confident Type personal artistic When to use this quote - songwriting - live performance - collaborations - studio recording Key Concepts artistic expression personal branding Questions to Reflect On - How does your instrument shape your self‑concept? - What role does production play in your identity? A Different Perspective May overlook the influence of external factors on perception. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Grandiose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandiose/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Identity Instrument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity-instrument-3356979/) [Instrument](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instrument/) [Instrument Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instrument-doesn-3356980/) [Instruments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instruments/) [Music making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-making/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Style](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/style/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) ## Related quotes > [Just because you have developed the craft on your instrument doesn't mean that you don't have the ability to be expressive emotionally on that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-petrucci/just-because-you-have-developed-the-craft-on-your-instrument-doesn-t/) [John Petrucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-petrucci/) > [You can only give away what you have inside. Become an instrument of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/you-can-only-give-away-what-you-have-inside-become-an-instrument-of/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [The idea that recording itself is an instrument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-snow/the-idea-that-recording-itself-is-an-instrument/) [Michael Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-snow/) > [I must play the instrument I've got.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/i-must-play-the-instrument-i-ve-got/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [The instrument is not the camera but the photographer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-arnold/the-instrument-is-not-the-camera-but-the-photographer/) [Eve Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-arnold/) > [Besides, the bass isn't a difficult instrument to play. It's like one step up from the kazoo, isn't it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-mustaine/besides-the-bass-isn-t-a-difficult-instrument-to-play-it-s-like-one/) [Dave Mustaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-mustaine/) > [I don't think that you can write music if you don't know how to play an instrument. You have to know the basics, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alber-elbaz/i-don-t-think-that-you-can-write-music-if-you-don-t-know-how-to-play/) [Alber Elbaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alber-elbaz/) > [Sometimes it's a fraught, kind of laden world of performance that I think can be really dubious, but it's also super fun to almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-hecker/sometimes-it-s-a-fraught-kind-of-laden-world-of-performance-that-i/) [Tim Hecker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-hecker/) > [Yes, I always say that we're a National League band. What I mean is, if you play an instrument, you have to sing. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmylou-harris/yes-i-always-say-that-we-re-a-national-league-band-what-i-mean-is-if/) [Emmylou Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmylou-harris/) > [Nature is an aeolian harp, a musical instrument whose tones are the re-echo of higher strings within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/novalis/nature-is-an-aeolian-harp-a-musical-instrument-whose-tones-are-the-re/) [Novalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/novalis/) > [We all know that there are many people that can play the instrument perfectly today, up and down with technical perfection, but does the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-finckel/we-all-know-that-there-are-many-people-that-can-play-the-instrument/) [David Finckel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-finckel/) > [A well trained body is a beautiful instrument on which to play the melody of the present moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-yee/a-well-trained-body-is-a-beautiful-instrument-on-which-to-play-the/) [Rodney Yee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-yee/) > [It is the photographer, not the camera, that is the instrument.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-the-photographer-not-the-camera-that-is-the-instrument/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Kenny G, I have to be grateful to him for proving that the instrument can be played all different kinds of ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-lacy/kenny-g-i-have-to-be-grateful-to-him-for-proving-that-the-instrument/) [Steve Lacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-lacy/) > [Money is the kind of instrument which is very speedily produced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoly-chubais/money-is-the-kind-of-instrument-which-is-very-speedily-produced/) [Anatoly Chubais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoly-chubais/) ## More by Liz Phair > [I mean, I think about it, but I don't design my record to get a certain public response.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-mean-i-think-about-it-but-i-don-t-design-my-record-to-get-a-certain/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I can't say I don't get nervous, but I really kind of enjoy performing now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-can-t-say-i-don-t-get-nervous-but-i-really-kind-of-enjoy-performing/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I ended up becoming so self-conscious that my songs stopped being about my life and started being about what people thought of my music.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-ended-up-becoming-so-self-conscious-that-my-songs-stopped-being/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I always give the encore over to chaos, so people can yell out requests and I can hack my way through a song that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-always-give-the-encore-over-to-chaos-so-people-can-yell-out/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I love scoring. Putting music to picture is a rewarding challenge and one that relies on interpretation of emotion - as in, what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-love-scoring-putting-music-to-picture-is-a-rewarding-challenge-and/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I'm known for being annoyingly gender-focused. It's always been my platform.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-m-known-for-being-annoyingly-gender-focused-it-s-always-been-my/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [That's exactly what's exciting for me - the idea of infiltrating the male structure and affecting change from within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/that-s-exactly-what-s-exciting-for-me-the-idea-of-infiltrating-the/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I knew that collaborating on songwriting would be difficult for a lot of people, because I was known very much, for my independence and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-knew-that-collaborating-on-songwriting-would-be-difficult-for-a-lot/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [It's important to have people who will say to you that you're really off the beaten track.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/it-s-important-to-have-people-who-will-say-to-you-that-you-re-really/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [When you love what you do, you're happy just doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/when-you-love-what-you-do-you-re-happy-just-doing-it/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I don't like being approached by people who look at me too intensely, who needed something from me that I didn't have. I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-don-t-like-being-approached-by-people-who-look-at-me-too-intensely/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [Just to prove i was right that it's harder to be friends than lovers and you shouldn't try and mix the two, cause if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/just-to-prove-i-was-right-that-it-s-harder-to-be-friends-than-lovers/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I was raised to be a very intelligent housewife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-was-raised-to-be-a-very-intelligent-housewife/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [Picture being forced to talk endlessly about your feelings and listen and care when what you needed was just to get something done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/picture-being-forced-to-talk-endlessly-about-your-feelings-and-listen/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I'm just out of touch with new music in general, and I only know about it if I'm hanging out with someone that knows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-m-just-out-of-touch-with-new-music-in-general-and-i-only-know-about/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) [Explore all 103 Liz Phair quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) ## More Grandiose quotes > [I had never done anything with blue screen before, or prosthetics, or anything like that. Lord of the Rings was like stepping into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/i-had-never-done-anything-with-blue-screen-before-or-prosthetics-or/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [Do we pour $40 billion into grandiose Louisiana engineering projects or do we instead put up no trespassing- signs in the areas below sea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-brinkley/do-we-pour-40-billion-into-grandiose-louisiana-engineering-projects/) [Douglas Brinkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-brinkley/) > [I love jazz. I still do. Dave Brubeck and Stan Getz are so good. I took a notification course in Jazz Orchestration. It wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-lightfoot/i-love-jazz-i-still-do-dave-brubeck-and-stan-getz-are-so-good-i-took/) [Gordon Lightfoot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-lightfoot/) > [Utopians...consider individual freedom as the stumbling block on which the grandiose idea of mankind's totalization may flounder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-steven-molnar/utopians-consider-individual-freedom-as-the-stumbling-block-on-which/) [Thomas Steven Molnar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-steven-molnar/) > [I think that doing comedy and playing Dwight is a service. Not to get grandiose about it, but I have a talent for playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainn-wilson/i-think-that-doing-comedy-and-playing-dwight-is-a-service-not-to-get/) [Rainn Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainn-wilson/) > [The only criticism heard with any frequency of Elton John's first American album, 'Elton John,' was that the production was too grandiose. The melodies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-landau/the-only-criticism-heard-with-any-frequency-of-elton-john-s-first/) [Jon Landau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-landau/) > [Working with Martin Scorsese was an absolute minute-by-minute education without him ever being grandiose about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/working-with-martin-scorsese-was-an-absolute-minute-by-minute/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [The grandiose plans of what Macintosh was gonna be was just so far out of whack with the truth of what the product was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-espinosa/the-grandiose-plans-of-what-macintosh-was-gonna-be-was-just-so-far/) [Chris Espinosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-espinosa/) > [In the nineteenth century the more grandiose word inspiration began to replace the word idea in the arts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lukas-foss/in-the-nineteenth-century-the-more-grandiose-word-inspiration-began/) [Lukas Foss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lukas-foss/) > [“I grow grandiose, which is a good sign I should become prosaic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/i-grow-grandiose-which-is-a-good-sign-i-should-become-prosaic/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [Songs are like a form of chaos that you can control. It's a form of intelligence that maybe you only understand and you hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billie-joe-armstrong/songs-are-like-a-form-of-chaos-that-you-can-control-it-s-a-form-of/) [Billie Joe Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billie-joe-armstrong/) > [Darkness always had its part to play. Without it, how would we know when we walked in the light? It’s only when its ambitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/darkness-always-had-its-part-to-play-without-it-how-would-we-know/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [There's something so showy about desperation, it takes hard wits to see it's a grandiose form of funk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bowen/there-s-something-so-showy-about-desperation-it-takes-hard-wits-to/) [Elizabeth Bowen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bowen/) > [Lyndon Johnson is not a comfortable model for President Obama to imitate. He is an all-but-forgotten president - pilloried for the failed war in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-dallek/lyndon-johnson-is-not-a-comfortable-model-for-president-obama-to/) [Robert Dallek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-dallek/) > [In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries you have these great nation states hurling their young men at one another. The victory was really going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-ambrose/in-the-nineteenth-and-twentieth-centuries-you-have-these-great-nation/) [Stephen Ambrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-ambrose/) [Browse all 101 Grandiose quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandiose/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "My identity has everything to do with me and my instrument. It doesn't have to do with what production style I use, or how many people played on it, whether it's sparse or grandiose or whatever. 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