There is no such thing as a normal family so don't trip off it, just deal with it.

Jay-Z is like a rap-savant, he doesn't have to write the rhymes down, he can create complex raps in his head. I mean he does memorize it, he just doesn't write it down on paper. He doesn't freestyle onto the track, it's all thought out.

If you're really a rapper, you can't stop rapping.

...As an artist, you need the naysayers and the nonbelievers to add fuel to your creative fire.

When I recorded my first album, my ego didn't let me believe that what I was gonna say on the mic, anyone would really care about. But then when I found out that they did, I started to take it more seriously.

Anybody who has anybody in the armed forces, I don't care how well-trained they are, there's nothing safe about it.

The trick with hip-hop-hip-hop is a sport. The only music that's really, really close to a sport. It starts off, "My DJ's better than yours. I can out-rap you, I can out-dance you, my graffiti piece is better than you." It's very competitive.