I didn't have nothing handed to me. It's a hard, long road getting to where I'm at. And I think the fans that have been down with me for a long time, they see that. They've been seeing me clawing my way to try to get to the top.

A moment will pass, but a movement will last.

It would be crazy for me to come out now talking about selling drugs and doing all this stuff I never did for the sake of A&R or records or trying to keep the street buzz or whatever.

When I get home and turn on the radio, I hear songs that are new to me, but to everybody else they're old. I try to keep the music fresh in my head.

What's life if you're not enjoying it?

It just gets old when you hear a million raps about how many ways I could shoot you.

A lot of people have that story that they used to sell crack or shoot people; that's nothing new. But honestly, if that was me, I probably still wouldn't be doing that because it's so many people that's doing that. It just gets old when you hear a million raps about how many ways I could shoot you. So I just try to be more creative and come with something new because I actually care about the music.