Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
We haven't been on the same page in years. It is what it is. Sometimes that match burns out. So, no, I don't feel bad about it. It's good. I'm grateful for everything we have done throughout our careers and if there's nothing else to put out, then there's nothing to put out. I'm constantly writing and working. It doesn't stop there.
I feel like I've got the skills to be at the top, I feel like I've got the mind-state, so basically what I'm saying is there's people all around me, there's artists all around me that are in my zone, but I still feel alone. I feel like I can't relate to them as much as I can related to maybe somebody that was a little bit higher up.
I definitely believe that the power of the artist is in the artist's hands now. We're kind of in the wild, wild west of music where labels don't exist anymore. And you go as far as you take yourself. And that's that American self-determination that is one of the reasons this country is so great and can survive on autopilot right now.
I'm a very creative person, and you know when I hooked up with Benny Boom, I said I want it to be a different kind of video. I want it to be crisp, and I want it to relate, [and] not to be so far over people's heads. And that's when we came up with the p-t-d-d-d-d-d (camera flashes.) You know with the picture changing, and that's it.
I would go to an aunt's house, and she would let me play music, and she had 'The Last Poets' album. At that time, albums didn't have explicit stickers on them, so some of the songs had profanity on them, and I was moved by that. I would listen to those songs, to the flow, and I'd balance it back and forth with the nursery stuff I had.
I was able to meet young black people from all over the country who were focused on education and on elevating themselves.I'm endorsing and supporting this initiative because I believe college is a blessing, and for young black people coming out of areas that are struggling ... for them to see college as their future, that's a blessing.
'Habits & Contradictions' is the prequel to 'Setbacks.' I had all these titles already in my head before I even dropped 'em. Like 'Setbacks,' I knew that was gone be the first one; I knew 'Habits & Contradictions.' I knew 'Oxymoron.' I got two more albums that I already have the title to it, and I know how I'ma play the theme off of it.
Once you dive into the African-American struggle or whatever you want to call it and you look past that, you realize that it's not a black people problem, it's a human problem. We all can't be at peace until we are all at peace. If there's a piece of us suffering, then we are all suffering. That's what it's about. That's the macro level.
The crews that are going to be self-produced are going to make the great albums, as opposed to making these mix-tapes, these compilations - "Me over this guy" It sounds good individually, but the art of the record is something that is lost. It gets to the point where it's just vocalists and producers coming in and piecing things together.
When you go to South Africa, you get a different vibe and a different sound. The music is awesome the people are loving it. When you go to Botswana, it's a different ball game. The people out there love Afro Beat Hip Hop so much. When you go to Sierra Leone it's different, when you go to Nigeria it's different... It's all pretty exciting!
I try to make Play Cloths really representative of me and my designers they look at my evolution as an artist and in fashion and they [zero] in to different details. I come into the office some days and they're like, 'What are those?" [I say,] "[These] are Philip Lim...[I'll] have on Philip Lim sweats and they go and put their spin on it.
Business is cold and harsh. Business doesn't consider your personal needs or the ends of your family. Business doesn't allow you to keep to your job after you slaved at a place for 20+ years. Rather than increase your benefits, business cuts you out of the job situation so that you're job-hunting, off to find a far less prestigious position.
Politicians step up and say, "This is what were going to do: we're going to set aside 450 million dollars for a mentorship program for orphaned youth," and so on and so forth, and it sounds great in this romanticized vision of what these alleged leaders are going to do for the alleged meek. But it doesn't examine: why are these kids orphans?
I had written rap songs in the early '90s and even did a couple homemade rap songs with my brother in like '88 or '89, but it was just like... I don't even know how to say it. Just plain rap. I was just rapping about whatever, there was no real style or direction, it was just semi-braggadocious rhymes that probably imitated 100 other rappers.
I would let my fans and people looking from the outside looking in dictate that. But, in my mind I gotta treat myself like I'm the best and gotta strive to be better than what I am. So of course my work ethic and the way I think as a person and an artist I'll feel that way. But on a boasting level, you would never hear that come out my mouth.
At a young age, I really wanted to make music and make my own sort of thing. I'm sure if it wasn't music, it would have been writing, or it would have been maybe painting. I just always had the drive to try and make something with my hands and to just pull something out of myself and shape it and see it in front of me, if that makes any sense.
She [Hillary Clinton] knows the people well. I think there is - you know, also talking about breaking down barriers and talking about that, whether we`re talking about that in economic terms. I mean, she`s the only person who has been out there talking about white privilege and talking about sort of the intersectionality of some of these issues.
People think that the government honors and respects us, and that they're actually going to come in and help people in need, but in reality it's really just a bunch of red tape, and through the power of language they can really make it seem like they're going to do a lot when they aren't going to do anything but filter money back into their own pockets.
Teachers give so much to the future and to youth. So, when you see somebody make that type of sacrifice towards work - just parents in general, what they got to give to their kids is a lot - I'm inspired, man, to give and help those who didn't or don't have opportunities. And even those that may have some opportunities, [to] help them achieve their dreams.
Ninety-eight percent of blacks voted for President Obama. That means these people are tied to that political party in a way that's different from other groups of people. Certain rappers always want to represent the Democratic side because they know that's safe and that's what represents their community. I tend to just do what I feel is right by all people.
I might not wear chains or I may just wear a watch or I may not wear any jewelry at all or I may just go all out on an outfit or just rock some basic s*** just a pair of jeans, a t-shirt and ones. But, I still standout more than a lot of people in the room so I can't really describe it but I know from the outside looking in people can explain better than I can.
It's never really quiet in the Wu-Tang tour bus unless it's a certain time of day. Sometimes it's quiet, but you're not going to have eight, nine members on a bus in total silence and everyone is up, unless there are some issues going on, unless there's a death or something really serious that just has us all thinking. Other than that, we're gonna be kicking it.
I think that people have been claiming hip-hop as being dead since the moment it started. I think there are people - and I can be included in that category sometimes - that get frustrated feeling like maybe the industry has handcuffed itself, or trained its artists to do or think about music in a way that classically hasn't led to the greatest records in hip-hop.
I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one woman now. If you can look at a continuum of my career, it's been an evolution of a real dude. So when I say I take my wife to the strip club, we're there, at the five-dollar joint. More than anything, I want people to take away that I'm not mainstream act.
When you're young and you're comin' up, and you dream of gettin' this record deal, and then you actually get it, and, you know, its apples and oranges from everything that you pictured. The line was pretty self-explanatory to me: once I got in my major label agreement, I definitely couldn't deal with it. It was drivin' me crazy, givin' me gray hairs at an early age.
On his method for lighting up: "Nothing special, but I do blunts, cigarellos, pipes, bongs, bowls, I'll smoke out of an old Timberland boot if you can rig it up and get some weed some out of it. I'll smoke that. Man, I've been saying that for years, so I might just try to make me a Timberland boot contraption that you can smoke weed out of. I think I'm gonna try it."
I believe that life is meaningless without hope, which is really what that line is about. Without hope, what are we living for? I wouldn't wanna see where exactly I'd be in five years. I wouldn't wanna know my exact date of death. I wouldn't want to know my exact cause of death. Certain things I just want to allow to take place rather than just have the knowledge beforehand.
I was going through a time where I was like man I wanted all of my clothes to be totally understated and I would do pop color with hats from a line called Ale et Ange out of New york City. They created all these hats and I just thought they were super fresh and the only way that I could really get them across...I was just like, 'Let me make everything mute and just put on the hat.'
What's when you rap and don't appreciate the art? What's when you sell out just to get a start? What's when you make bullshit just for the charts? What's when you rap, but it's not from the heart? What's when you're hardcore, then you turn pop? When you steal ideas to get props? When you sell out to be on top? What's when you front like you're hard, but you're not? That's a gimmick.
As I got to know the people of the Civil Rights Movement, I realized... I am the hopeful black woman who was denied her right to vote. I am the caring white supporter killed on the front lines of freedom. I am the unarmed black kid who maybe needed a hand, but instead was given a bullet. I am the two fallen police officers murdered in the line of duty. 'Selma' has awakened my humanity.
For me, I was born in the Bronx, and I moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia at a very young age. I had the luxury of going back to New York, visiting my grandmother who would spoil me endlessly, and I could buy whatever was the hot kicks in the summertime of 1990. Being able to shop and then going back to Virginia Beach, where they weren't as fast in regards to fashion, I had that luxury.
Look at me as an example. I don't have the best education or the best looks. Where I'm from in Nigeria is not entertainment driven, it's the northern part of Nigeria and over there they hardly pay attention to entertainment. I came out of that place to attain this level of success. I always say if I can get here with all of these imperfections then no one has the excuse to fail in life.
I couldn't sell pills no more [because my] homie went to jail. I was just dirt broke. I went to TDE and was literally living in the studio where you record. I went damn near a whole two years not getting sleep because there was always somebody there recording. I was taking baths with dishwashing liquid.I was one of the dudes [who] would never ask for nothing so I would never ask for soap.
I think Trump is indicative of a larger problem. It existed way before him, it is our generation's issue that all over the world people are and have been suffering from despotic power figures who want nothing more to control than help the people they claim to represent. The difference being is a lot of people had not been paying much attention prior because it wasn't directly impacting them.
You see a briefcase for business, a bookbag for education, a knife and gun for violence. Then there's government, law, media overall, and so on and so forth, just things that we are kept busy by. We're either entertained by them or we're just trying to keep our heads above water by trying to earn enough money at a job so we can afford just any standard of living, let alone the standard that we desire.
I got a smile that'll make the mirror crack, And I seem to stay under clouds that's pitch black. So when it rains, it pours, and when it pours, I'm soaked. I contracted lung cancer from third hand smoke, And I'm like the frog that's dying to be a prince, The boy who cried wolf and no one was convinced. The man who hit lotto and lost his ticket, In a rainstorm...and struck by lightning trying to get it.
Your body is you. That's your temple. So, eating wisely helps you function for the day. If you want to look good and feel good, you gotta eat good. What you put into your temple, man, is very important. I learned that later on in life, but I started putting that into practice. I'm not perfect in my eating. I just try to live healthily, and to take care of myself so that during this lifetime I can live good.
There are a lot of new sounds I've gone for, which I may not have been ready to go for in the past, especially moving away from just rapping. I really tried to push my songwriting side on this one. I think that, for better or worse, people have definitely been able to tell. Changing style is always gonna be a love/hate thing for people, but I love it all, and I can't please everyone so that's all that matters.
How many rappers in the game have "little" in front of their name? Lil' Wayne, Lil' Boosie it's a lil' shame Lil' Flip, Lil' Cease, yo they not the same Lil' Wyte, Lil' Mama, where Lil' Zane? Little Brother, Lil' Jon, and Lil' Fame Real hip hop, not about your lil' chain Lil' Keke, Lil' Kim a lil' freaky Lil' Fizz, Illegal with Lil' Maliky Lil' Mo, Lil' Bow Wow had beef with Lil' Romeo A lil' teenager told me so.
The fact is, if you have a solid healthcare plan, you still don't have dental. If you have dental, you might not have vision. And if your back hurts, well, a chiropractor's not covered in that. It's a hassle. You have to go seek out on your own and look for the best plan you can afford, and a lot of times what people can afford is not what they need, and it creates lot of leeway for people to slip through the cracks.
I'm so devoted to my music and becoming the best artist I can be. I don't want to devote too much time to anything else before I say I've conquered that. I just wanna become bigger and I'm never satisfied with just what I am today, I just always want to be bigger. If I was Bill Gates, I would double Bill Gates. That's the mindstate you should keep in any profession, just keep striking iron and trying to get bigger and better.
Success to me is self-determined, the life I live today, to come from a kid strung out on angel dust, homeless, at some points sleeping in the street. No money, not knowing where the next meal was coming from. No sex, no relationships, people that didn't love me, didn't care about me, to where I am today... that's successful. When I signed my record deal I always wanted to be respected by my peers for my ability and my skill level.
Adidas has invested so much into this collab and into me. It'd be easy for any brand, with some of the spearheads that they have in their roster, just to say, "We got this guy and that guy over there, the Pusha T thing can just be - eh." But they haven't spared any expense, they've let their creativity run wild, and it really makes me feel that I'm a part of a family. It makes me feel like they enjoy watching the growth of Pusha T.
I don't think I'm more politically-based as much as socially-based. My grandmother died on February 29th, and she kept all of my magazine and newspaper scraps, every interview. I've been in the newspapers since I was about 15 - not for rapping, but for real substantive stuff I was doing in the community, organizing around gang violence in the schools. So I had already made my grandma proud before I was on TV. I've always been who I am.
When you’re confronted by a really difficult thing in your life, you’re faced with a choice: you can runaway from it, or you can face it, confront it, and work through it. But to work through it, sometimes feels like holding your own head below water when you’re already drowning. Your natural instinct when drowning is to get back up to the surface and give yourself some relief from that terrible situation…you just want to breathe again.
Having my foundation be from two positive black role models in my life, my mom and my dad, two strong-minded intelligent individuals who clearly have made a great deal of great decisions in their lives and put me in a position, via educational institutions, to be around other intelligent people and to have a strong moral foundation, from which I try to never stray far. It all spurred me to carve out my own little niche as a human being.
You guys are always going off about how much money you have. Do you realize what's going on in this world right now?' All these black rappers? African rappers? Talking about how much money they have. Do you realize what's going on in Africa right now? It's just like, you guys are disgusting. Talking about billions and billions of dollars you have. And spending it frivolously, when you know, the Motherland is suffering beyond belief right now.
I don't think I have a favorite chess move, other than checkmate, because each move is part of a combination of other moves. Just like I don't have a favorite piece, because they all work together. I mean, I love myself; I am the king on the board, but other pieces do different things and they all work together, so it's not one particular move unless it's checkmate because usually there's an answer. You know, chess is about questions and answers.
I've been a sinner and a saint. If you've been a saint all your life, it's pretty easy to sleep at night. If you've been a sinner, you're just as comfortable in it. I've walked both sides of the fence, and there are times I can't sleep and I wake the engineer up and get it out of me. But it usually doesn't pour all the way out. I have to come back and have the conversation that you usually try not to have with yourself. That's how it gets resolved.
When I think back to my influences and icons musically, they were my icons musically because, for example, I would look at Rakim and be like man he said the freshest things and then I look at him and he would have on the pair of Nikes that I wanted and I'm like, "ma' please!" It was everything. Now, I sort of feel like if you are fresh then your music doesn't have to be that good because people are so keyed into the fashion. That's just the times I guess.