Skip to main content

Creativity Quote by Amanda Marshall

"I'm a reasonably articulate individual"

About this Quote

Self-deprecation that doubles as a flex: "I'm a reasonably articulate individual" is the kind of line a musician drops when she knows the room is primed to dismiss her as just a voice. Amanda Marshall came up in an era when female singer-songwriters were expected to be emotionally legible on record, then charmingly inarticulate in interviews - all feeling, no thesis. "Reasonably" is the tell. It lowers the temperature, tamping down any whiff of ego, while still staking a claim to competence. She isnt declaring herself brilliant; shes refusing the caricature.

The phrasing also reads like preemptive damage control. Artists are constantly asked to explain songs that were made in a different language: melody, instinct, private experience. Saying youre "reasonably articulate" sets expectations for a translation that will be imperfect but sincere. It suggests a person who can speak for herself, yet recognizes how quickly the media punishes certainty. Understatement becomes armor.

Culturally, the line lands as a small act of boundary-setting. Marshall's work traded on big, direct emotion; the public loves that until it decides emotion equals naivete. By identifying as "an individual" - not a diva, not a brand, not a "female vocalist" category - she asserts personhood over packaging. The intent is modest, the subtext is defiant: dont mistake my accessibility for lack of agency.

Quote Details

TopicConfidence
SourceHelp us find the source
Cite

Citation Formats

APA Style (7th ed.)
Marshall, Amanda. (2026, January 17). I'm a reasonably articulate individual. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/im-a-reasonably-articulate-individual-45659/

Chicago Style
Marshall, Amanda. "I'm a reasonably articulate individual." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/im-a-reasonably-articulate-individual-45659/.

MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I'm a reasonably articulate individual." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/im-a-reasonably-articulate-individual-45659/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.

More Quotes by Amanda Add to List
Im a Reasonably Articulate Individual - Amanda Marshall
Click to enlarge Portrait | Landscape

About the Author

Canada Flag

Amanda Marshall (born August 29, 1972) is a Musician from Canada.

2 more quotes available

View Profile

Similar Quotes

Jim Hodges, Politician
Kim Basinger, Actress
Pierre Salinger, Public Servant
Gloria Swanson, Actress
Arthur Keith, Scientist
Robert M. Parker, Jr., Critic
Martin Gore, Musician
Frances McDormand, Actress
Frances McDormand
Lajos Kossuth, Lawyer