I try to keep the music fresh in my head. And I don't always listen to rap; I listen to a little bit of everything: R&B, rock.

I kind of grew up and started maturing.

If I asked you something about basketball and you don't really know about basketball and you try to talk it and fake it, I'm going to be able to tell. It's the same way about music; you have to be real.

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.

The streets and the industry are two different things. You could be one super-hot artist in the streets, and you could walk into a corporate building, and people would be like, "Who are you?"

The visual is everywhere in the streets, but in the industry, it's like you have to show up at this party and you can't take on the world in one day. It's a gradual process, but you can't let it frustrate you; you just have to keep grinding.

Most people hear me do all these freestyles and never hear me tell a story.