I believe your success is based off what your goals are. Are you trying to feed your family or have plaques on the wall and be broke? In that case, I think the game is in a better place. We have all heard of famous artists who are broke. Then we know of artists who may have had only a song or two on radio, but have a million or two dollars off that quick come up.

Speaking for myself, my first priority is to take care of my family. That's first and foremost.

Just the responsibility of wanting to see my mother have a better life; making sure my sister had a better life. I went ahead and accepted that responsibility when I was young and it paid off. That was really the only goal.

I'm a real dude from a real place and I never express myself through social sites. I don't feed into it, man. That's not real life.

I was blessed with the talent. God gave me the gift to put words together and make popular songs.

The first CD said exactly what it was. I was just in the streets hustling. I come from a family of hustlers.

Being independent is more of a mind state more than anything else. A lot of people don't understand that being an independent artist means being hands on with your career in every aspect - not being afraid to spend your own money and invest time in yourself. Although I'm affiliated with a major label, I still wake up every day with an independent mindset.