KRS-One

“High respect goes out to our mothers, our single mothers. This is why today the real community uplifts femininity and holds womanhood above, not equal to, masculinity.”

“If you vote for evil, you are evil yourself.”

“No one ever really talks about the punk-rock involvement in hip-hop, which influenced Afrika Bambaata.”

“Young people may be stupid at times, but they respond to the truth when it is present, and for them, KRS-One is the truth!”

“If the radio ever played my music, I would sue them. And they know it, which is why they don't play my music.”

“When I wake up in the morning, do I think I'm a role model? Yes. I'm not trying to have a pristine image, because a real role model shows you to the good and ugly.”

“If you don't know hip-hop, at least a little bit of it, you can't even call yourself an American.”

“The ones that sell the most aren't the ones that are remembered.”

“Violence on the community stops when the soul matures.”

“The truth is nobody was a Muslim until Public Enemy came out. Then, everybody was Muslim this and Muslim that. It's a bandwagon thing. Islam is a way of life... it's a religion. It's not just something you put on a record.”

“No child is racist. A child is born, and then they go through the educational system.”

“There was no hip-hop before Afrika Bambaataa.”

“Why isn't there any 50-year-old MCs killing it? I'm 46. Am I the only one? I can't wait to get to 50. I'm going to let everybody know it! I'm going to wear a shirt that says 'I'm 50.'”

“When I was about 15 years old, I began to embark on an MC career but also to study philosophy with an emphasis on theology.”

“The Temple of HipHop has declared HipHop its own religion. We believe HipHop is divine. HipHop proves the existence of God.”

“I'm here to inspire young people to be part of the most magnificent culture on earth: hip-hop.”

“Every ghetto kid that walks the earth can see something in KRS-One that reminds him of himself.”

“Maybe I'm the prophet of hip hop for real. Maybe I do come with some kind of divine principle behind me, because I know that every battle I've ever had I've always won.”

“How can you call yourself a cosmopolitan modern person if you don't know what hip-hop is?”

“Everything God wants you to know is already written in your heart.”