I will never again play anything that does not have social significance. We American jazz musicians of African descent have proved beyond all doubt that we are master musicians of our instruments. Now what we have to do is employ our skill to tell the dramatic story of our people and what we've been through.
Max RoachMy point is that we much decolonize our minds and re-name and re-define ourselves . . . In all respects, culturally, politically, socially, we must re-define ourselves and our lives, in our own terms.
Max RoachJazz is a democratic musical form. We take our respective instruments & collectively create a thing of beauty.
Max RoachThey had all this talent, and they had no instruments. So they started rap music. They rhymed on their own. They made their own sounds and their own movements.
Max Roach