You know, I'm no different from a fireman. You got to run into a fire no matter how big the blaze is.

I am very conscious of who I am as an artist and as an inspirational person.

My mother wasn't rich, and I never seen my father. I was a street performer. I've been shot. And now I'm known around the world, and I've touched a lot of people with my music. That's one of the great testimonies that's gonna go down in history.

My mother always told me if you write about life, you will always be in the game. Just don't write songs write life. I decided to take her up on that.

I'm the Ali of today. I'm the Marvin Gaye of today. I'm the Bob Marley of today. I'm the Martin Luther King, or all the other greats that have come before us. And a lot of people are starting to realize that now.

People can say whatever they want about you without knowing the facts. They can criticize you without even knowing you, and hate you when they don't even know you. All of a sudden, you're, like, the bin Laden of America. Osama bin Laden is the only one who knows exactly what I'm going through.

I know my past is not what my future holds.