What I'm trying to do is make music that people relate to, that talks about ideas that are personal but also make that connection to trying to make revolutionary change, and I don't need to change my music to get to a certain audience.

I just make music based on what I believe.

I lived in Detroit until I was six. My older sister was living with us, and she listened to the Ohio Players and Stevie Wonder, so I grew up listening to stuff like that.

All of a sudden it became that hip hop didn't used to be about partying; hip hop used to be about putting out a message.

It's usually important to me to get my idea out first because a lot of times my ideas will seem weird to musicians.

When my daughter was born, that was the first time I cried from happiness.

I had no idea how much the stuff I was doing was affecting people outside Oakland. At the time, also, hip hop wasn't able to tour because all these clubs that let hip hop come in now, they would never have let hip hop come in.