Jay Rock
I remember back in the days my Mom didn't have enough for Thanksgiving.Collection: Thanksgiving
We don't care who you is - Blood, Crip, Mexican, Chinese. You feel me? If you about doing something positive with yourself and your community, let's join forces together.Collection: Positive
It is teamwork that makes the dream work.Collection: Work
I just fell in love with the music, man. The music just took control. It really saved my life.
I love women. I love 'em to death, but sometimes you have to be careful. Sometimes these women out here play games, too.
What's right is right, and what's wrong is wrong. That's how I live my life.
Shout out to J. Cole. We come from the same type of struggles. He put the real in his music, I put the real in mine.
My mom used to always read Bible scriptures to me and constantly say, 'Charity starts at home.' I always kept that in my mind and watched how it came to reality.
At the end of the day, I had to learn that it's all about having fun... na'mean?
E-40 taught me a long time ago to try different things with my voice, experiment, and only roll with it if it feels right.
If you listen to the old Rock I always had one tone of rapping, but now I'm learning how to stretch out my voice and use it in different ways.
I want to motivate people because I know how it is, struggling, and coming from a place where you have nothing. So my thing is to motivate people to let them know whatever you put your mind to, or whatever you love to do, then stick with it and don't give up.
I always wanted to do a record called, 'The Three J's,' because you got me, Jay Rock, you got J. Cole, and you got Jay Z. I thought that it would be dope. I said, if I couldn't get Jay Z, we'll get Jay Electronica.
I lost a lot of homeboys growing up, a lot of family, at early ages.
It ain't about going backwards. It's about moving forward.
Money can make or break you. It just depends on what you make it to be.
Hustle like you broke and keep that passion.
People like to come support when somebody's gone, people wanna show all the love, but they didn't wanna show the love when he was here.
I've been able to win a Grammy and then to come back and get the key to the city of Watts.
That's what it's about. Bringing unity, so our kids can grow up safe.
Kendrick Lamar, he has stood up for peace and love in our community. When he could have just stood up for himself.
When the time right, you might get a Black Hippy album.
I worked with Busta back in the days, shoutout to the OG Busta Rhymes.
One thing I learned about Tech N9ne is just hard work. That dude don't sleep. I ain't ever seen this dude really sleep.
My little bro Kendrick Lamar. I've been saying it for the times even when I was on Warner when everybody knew him as K-Dot. I used to tell people all the time, watch when K-Dot step out the box, he's going to be a problem.
With gangs, there could be a positive outlook because it takes the older guys to come school these younger guys on the right roles.
I've got big homies that done been through the same thing I've been through and they made it out, changed their life and they come back and snatch young cats up and lecture them and let them know right way to do it.
We just need more father figures and more older people to come and school these youth, because there will be a lost generation. And that's what a gang's supposed to be, protecting family and doing what you've got to do for your loved ones.
I was on Warner Bros. for a minute.
It's crazy how Tech N9ne was back home in L.A. He knew about my situation, what I was doing, trying to find other labels. He used to always call. 'Let me know what's up, man. We got room for you over here.' We appreciated it.
I always had a thing - just take care of family.
I had a life outside of music too.
Just keep going hard.
I never expect those type of dudes to even listen to my music but for one of those Juggalos to come up to me like, 'Man, that 'All My Life' record, man you was talking to me.' That struck me like, 'Damn, maybe people, you never know who's listening and who you might be touching with your music.'
I broke my leg and cracked my pelvis.
That's what I used to do; I would just go into the studio and just rap. But it's all about coming up with dope concepts and dope hooks.
Anything with music, you got to have inspiration. You got to have inspiration to do good music.
Like, my whole life I've been right here in this zip code, 90059. Regardless of wherever I go I always end up in the same spot.
We always hear Compton and Long Beach, but Watts is always overlooked.
A lot of rappers were influenced off the West Coast, even from the East.
I've been working with a lot of different producers.
I've been hearing what a lot of people been doing and what a lot of people been putting out musically, I've been listening.
A lot of people have been sending me beats, I've just been getting it in.
It's everyone's dream to be on a cover of a magazine - you know what I mean? It's like a dream come true.
We all knew how talented K.Dot is. We knew how dope he was lyrically.
Everybody knows how hard Jay Rock is.
That's what Watts stand for, it taught me how to survive it taught me how to be a man.
I was one of those young cats and knuckleheads that was hard headed, that didn't listen.
Just make good music.
Starting out in Watts, I can say I really had a love for music.