I think all of this—The Roots and DJing included—was meant to prepare me for The Tonight Show.

It's a funny word, persistence. It means not giving up, but it also means just passing on through time.

I've come to the conclusion that the average person can do about four things a day, like four real things a day.

After 2001, everyone in the Soulquarians blew up, which wasn't expected. We all got the success, and then everybody froze.

To be hip-hop is much more than just rapping in the production. It is more in the attitude.

Every time a new record started, people exhaled with pleasure, or their bodies moved automatically. I really started getting high off of the euphoric exclamations. Every record I put on was like a baptism.

Working with the artist elite can be like banging your head against the wall.