If you go get a passport, it might encourage you to at least consider the world around you.

Being called Black in America is the struggle to keep us moving and breathing over bloody water. Being a Nig**r or [Ni**a] without the context of history is like drowning in bloody water, dragging down those yet knowing to swim.

In the past, people were going to record stores and buying albums or CDs. And the label was exposing their artist as much as possible and maybe getting them picked up by a major. Now I tell people to cut a good tune and have it up in the marketplace the next day. You better be prepared to give it away, and people will come pay to see you.

I'm most passionate about, you know, making everybody understand that we should all have equal access on this earth.

Try to do your best to look people in the eye and talk to them without a gadget being in between you all the time.

I adhere to the philosophy, "I don't care who writes the laws, let me write the songs."

My work throughout my life is always representative of the time we live in. It's all about keeping it in order and keeping it in gear.