I love Ralph Lauren, just as a designer. I still think he could make some better sizes with his clothes, but I like the idea of his classic American style.
I never wanted to give up my power. I wanted to be able to make my own decisions, so that’s why I became involved in management, bottom line.
I love riding, even if it’s just my Vespa. You just zip and do your thing. I find there’s a different awareness when I ride; it connects me to my senses and to God.
I never pictured myself as just a rapper; I always wanted to act and do whatever else I could do. I always felt like I could do a lot of different things.
I think as far as the music industry is concerned, it’s kind of been the wild, wild West in a way with the Internet, which is not necessarily a bad thing to me.
I try to only commit myself to things that I think I can accomplish and commit myself to 100 percent. I try not to bite off more than I can chew.
I want to have and adopt. I always have; ever since I was 18, I wanted a baby, and I wanted to have and adopt because there are a lot of kids. I want to adopt an American baby though, you know what I mean, no offense. Just because there are so many kids here that need our help.
I was baptized a Baptist, but I’m just Christian, as far as I’m concerned. I could go in any church, doesn’t matter if it’s Baptist, Protestant, Episcopal, or Catholic.
I would like – either as an actor, or producer or even director – to do something sci-fi or action-related. I like sci-fi, always have, ‘Star Trek’ and ‘Star Wars’ and all that stuff.
I’d say, if you want to be an artist, start with your art; start with making great music and it will, hopefully, eventually cut through all of the nonsense that is out there.
I’m probably proudest of being able to lift a lot of us out of the ’hood. That’s the biggest thing, that I’ve been able to employ a lot of people and give them opportunities.
I’m proud of everything I do, but I think I’m the most happy about becoming a rapper. It was my entrance into everything. That helped me get into acting.
I came from a crew, and to me, all the guys I rapped with were better than me, so I was surprised when I was the breakout one. It was definitely a cool thing.
It’s great to be able to employ people who other people wouldn’t consider viable employees.
If you can draw something from my life that helps, more power to you.
As a rapper, you sort of act in music videos and in the persona you adopt onstage. You kinda have to put yourself out there and be courageous even to be a rapper. So, to step into acting was not that difficult a transition to make.
I definitely think we need to lean more on God. And I do think we need to praise, because we need to give it outward. You know, whenever you think you’re in tough circumstances, there’s always somebody who’s in a worse position than you.
Award shows, like the Grammys, were tough on us early in hip-hop, not even televising our categories or splitting them up on best male or female or any of that. We had to earn them.
Business is fun. Controlling your own destiny is fun. Creating an idea and turning it into a movie; finding an artist and guiding their career and bringing them to some type of status – there’s joy in that.
Having Black hair is unique in that Black women change up styles a lot. You can walk down one street block in New York City and see 10 different hairstyles that Black women are wearing: straight curls, short cuts, braids – we really run the gamut.