The only reason I started using samples was because people talked about me not sounding like Kanye or The Heatmakers.

I like so many different genres of music that I guess it would be hard for me to pick one person who inspires me when so many people inspire me to make good music.

It's a beautiful thing to build your own fan base and pay the bills knowing that you're staying true to your music at the end of the day. I look at life like this, the sky's the limit!

Albums aren't even selling anymore and there's a reason for that. Record companies are just signing single and ring tone deals and it doesn't seem like they're focusing on albums.

I think at the end of the day you can do both: make money and stay true to yourself. But a lot of young people look for that fame that some of these huge artists that they see on TV have, not knowing they can do what some of these underground artist are doing which is not selling their souls for a buck.

I grew up listening to Commission, Kirk Franklin and Hezekiah Walker. If I was found listening to any rap, my pops would throw them out, or crush the CDs and tapes - literally.

Young kids out here see what's on TV and feel like they can start rapping. They think rappers are rich and really have their own jets and Bentleys, but in lot of cases that stuff is rented.