When I started thinking about it, I was like, 'OK, if throughout time I get labeled as a conscious artist, I'll be very much celebrated, in a way, and honored.'
Movies and media really can influence us. A few years ago, my daughter wanted to be a dancer; since Obama came into office, she now wants to be a lawyer and get into politics and maybe even be president.
Technically, my first acting job was in one of my videos for a song called 'Retrospect For Life,' which Lauryn Hill directed and featured an actress by the name of N'bushe Wright, who played my girlfriend who was about to be pregnant. I remember being so nervous about it, but now I feel like I can conquer the world with it.
This is a broad thought, but loving yourself and having the support so that you can love yourself is the most important thing that young people in Chicago can get.
One thing I have throughout my career, it felt like I did my best to align myself with quality artists, quality work, and it is a situation of steel sharpening steel.
I learned a long time ago to be honest when I'm talking to other artists. Up-and-coming artists used to come and say something, they would have a demo reel, and I would try to tell them the truth. I don't go up and say something unless I really feel it.
What America was built on was being able to say, 'Hey, we're going to come in and use our resources to build for ourselves and our communities and build around that. We're not going to depend on others.'
I believe that music is about making quality things, making quality art, and no matter who you decide to work with, you and that person have to come up with something special, come up with something that is excellent material, so whoever hears it and reviews it will like it.
I think you really have to remember what you loved about making music in the first place. Ultimately, people can be like, 'We've seen this dude in many movies,' but if they hear a song and they're feeling it, they can look past all the personal things and not hold it against you that you're also an actor.
That's why I named my album 'Finding Forever,' because that's what I was thinking about: What did I want to contribute to this world that would live beyond my physical existence?
Man, if I get a chance to speak on the microphone, I've got to say something somewhere in there. You know, I'm going to laugh and have fun, too, but something has to be said that has some substance, because this is a platform, and the power that we have with words and with this microphone is phenomenal.
