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" I didn't want to have to deal with having any moniker or separation between the self that I see and know myself as. "

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" With guys I revere, like Marcus Garvey or Malcolm X, their look is less about style than purpose and the expression of beauty. It wasn't just about being noticed, you know? "

" I have mad brims. "

" I feel like I was the only person who was capable of making this type of music in this type of way. I don't rap like nobody, I don't try to sound like nobody. "

" I can't control what people think. I'm not trying to manipulate people's thoughts or sentiments. I write all the time. You have to experience life, make observations, and ask questions. It's machine-like how things are run now in hip-hop, and my ambitions are different. "

" I get reminded a lot of the time that my life is a little bit different, but I'm just trying to keep it as regular as possible because I like it that way. "

" I began to fear that Mos Def was being treated as a product, not a person, so I've been going by Yasiin since '99. At first it was just for friends and family, but now I'm declaring it openly. "

Friends And Family

" If 'Life in Marvelous Times' can't get on the radio, then I don't need to be on the radio. "

" Hip-hop is the last true folk art. "

" My presence speaks volumes before I say a word. "

" I got my first exposure to Islam when I was 13. "

" There are a lot of people who call themselves teachers or leaders, but they're really just propagandists. "

" In the early '90s, when I really started to find my voice, I was reading a lot of books, and I was moved by the writers, like Chinua Achebe, and I wanted to be able to write rhymes that were as potent as what I was reading. "

" I believe the projects were a social experiment; we were laboratory rats stacked on top of each other, and people just knew, inherently, that there was something wrong. There's not a lot of regard for the property by the residents. "

" I don't mind being black. I'm black out loud. It's more than the people that they are, it's the condition that they represent. "

" To me, playing an instrument and singing, all of these different things are just as natural to me as rhyming. "

" I've always loved rhyming. I love language. "

" You're not gonna get through life without being worshipful or devoted to something. You're either devoted to your job, or to your desires. So the best way to spend your life is to try to be devoted to prayer, to Allah. "

" I'm just an artist and I'm doin' what I like to do. "

" I'm a passionate person. I'm a lot of things, like most people are. Most people are dynamic. The focus is not on me though, I'm a screen. The aim is to always keep myself in the position where the screen is clear. "

" I know what it feels like to have the door slammed firmly in my face, so I'm cool with that. "

" I don't have advice for people on how to dress. People should dress based on what they find beautiful. My best advice: Keep your clothes clean. "

" If you're going to do Chuck Berry, you got to, you know, go all out, and the duck walk is just kind of you know, cursory. That's like standing. "

" It's possible and available to any artist to be himself or herself on their own terms, to be accepted and embraced by black people. You don't have to be a thug to get love from black people. "

" I come from a family of very devout, praying people. That idea of peace and love toward humanity shouldn't be nationalistic or denominational. It should be a chief concern for all mankind. "

" Bob Marley performed the 'One Love Peace' concert in Jamaica with the two different warring political sides. There's always been that in black music and culture in general. It's no surprise because black music is such a reflection of what's going on in black life. It's not unusual for hip-hop. "

" I guess something that you love to do, you gotta ease up off it and give it a little space, come back and be fresh to it. "

" The ability to have somebody read something and see it, or for somebody to paint an entire landscape of visual imagery with just sheets of words - that's magical. That's what I've been trying to strive for - to draw a clear picture, to open up a new dimension. "

" All the things that are worth doing, take time. "

" I never had any ambitions of being a movie star or anything like that, but you know, this is nice. "

" I don't wanna get into that space where a lot of guys now, their solo album is like eight or 10 songs with other people, you don't get an idea of who this guy is. I just wasn't interested in that. "