For me, hip-hop was a mirror when young-adult books were not. I could see myself in a Nas song more than I could see myself in a book.

I was once sitting on a tube, and someone was playing my song so loudly through their ear phones next to me. I just stayed silent and chuckled to myself.

People do notice me - I'm always so surprised. When I dyed my hair blond for 'Suburgatory,' people would still recognize me from 'The Last Song,' when I had red hair, and I didn't even recognize myself.

I do not see myself exposing and revealing. If there is a requirement for an item song or a special appearance song I might do it... if it is in the capacity of the film, if it is comfortable and suits me.

I never really focus on writing for other people, to be honest. Every song I've ever written was for me to sing. Maybe if I'm writing for a rapper, but I'd still write it as though it was for myself and then sometimes I'm actually asked to do the part.

When I was 16 or 17, anyone could have had me if they sang the right song and recruited me in the right way. Which is why I've always had a sneaking understanding for people who took the wrong route. That doesn't mean to say I took it or even contemplated it myself.

I don't really see myself in a lineage which is fine with me. Sometimes I do try to explicitly copy an exact song, an arrangement, a sound - and I fail. And so you can't even tell I was trying to do that thing. It makes sense in my own head but I'm incapable of copying.

I don't like albums; I like projects. I want to tell a story - I don't want to limit myself to 10 songs or four songs or whatever. I just tell a story and I want you to feel something. If it took me one song or if it took me four, call it however you want. So I call them projects.

My favorite song on the album is 'Paper Doll' because I think it's a message that a lot of people need to hear, and it's about something that a lot of people struggle with. But I don't victimize myself in the song and I don't allow the person who's trying to intimidate me get to me.

The way I approach this thing, when I started to get my head screwed on straight and really trying to make something of myself as an artist, when I was 19 or 20, it became more about function for me. Like, what is this song doing to you? What is the function of this type of artform? What is it doing?

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