Rappers are usually rapping about knowledge they think people need to get by in the world. If there's no movement that gives the idea that the knowledge people need is how to take over the system, what they see is that people need to know how to hustle; people need to know how to survive.

In high school, everybody rapped. You just pounded on the table.

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.

I thought there were too many songs about people's personal lives.

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.

A lot of what we say and do are regurgitated things that have to do with what we think we're supposed to be saying and doing.

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.