I don't want to waste anyone's time or money. I want to give people some truth and positive heart lift.

• And remember don't high post when you're far from home, and high posting when you're all alone.
• Good art provides people with a vocabulary about things they can't articulate.
• 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?
• Focused. I'm a hustler. And my hustle is trying to figure out the best ways to do what I like without having to do much else.
• I know what it feels like to have the door slammed firmly in my face, so I'm cool with that.
• 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.
• You have to experience life, make observations, and ask questions.
• To me, the job of the artist is to provide a useful and intelligent vocabulary for the world to be able to articulate feelings they experience everyday, and otherwise wouldn't have the means to express in a meaningful and useful way.
• 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.
• 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.