Pusha T

“I've been going to Europe for some time on the festival circuit, and once you get in that element and see others reacting to it, it's easier to understand. You get trapped in the wave. The beats are driving and super-aggressive - like, so hard. I was curious.”

“When you make albums like I do, and it's based off fanfare and based off touring - I make these albums, and I get on the road. It's not really a radio-driven thing. I get on the road, and I see my fans, and I touch each and every last one of them.”

“I just start my day really early. Everything happens in the morning time. Writing. Just everything. I can't - I don't know how to work late.”

“G.O.O.D. Music is on top because G.O.O.D. Music is the culture. When you think of, you know, just every aspect from music, influence, fashion, art level. If it's not G.O.O.D Music, then it's somebody who was influenced heavily by G.O.O.D. Music.”

“A good villain exudes charisma and power. He has principles, though; that just gives him a level of dimension. It makes him seem to be a bit unpredictable, because he's usually deemed as some type of evil, ruthless person, and then he shows you his principles, and you don't know what to think of it.”

“By now, you should know what you're getting with Pusha T. I've been in this game since 2002, and my name says it all. You know I'm only moved by a certain style of rap. Not that many other styles move me. You have to really be a rapper's rapper for me to like it.”

“Allen Iverson is, like, my all-time hero.”

“I've always had some level of having to be independent outside of music because the music wasn't a smooth ride. We lost a lot in the mix: Everybody that I came in the music game with - friends I brought in with me - are all doing 10-34 years in jail. That's why if you want to get the real, you gotta get it from me.”

“The crafting of lyrics is really a task, and when it comes to street culture, I don't feel like anyone else articulates it better than me.”

“I tell people that the Clipse were the first Internet rap darlings.”

“I caught the U.S. Open a couple of times, but, man, I would love to catch Wimbledon and watch Nadal - he is the king of all kings.”

“My music is airy; it's spacious. It requires you to be able to rap and articulate your message over it. That's what the beat demands of you. Not a lot of people try to rap over my beats because it's a bit of a task.”

“As a writer, you're always trying to say the best thing. You're always thinking about what's the best thing to say, and what's the hardest way to say it, and what's the best line? Sometimes the best line is the simplest line. Sometimes the best line is the line that evokes more feeling than actual wordsmithing.”

“I try to do records sometimes that have a different bounce - maybe it's a Southern bounce or something.”

“Oh, I'm up at 6:00 A.M. every morning because I have a lot to do. Plenty. I work out probably at, like, 8:00. I gotta eat at 6:00 so, therefore, I can workout at 8:00.”

“Me tweeting sometimes, it's like, I don't even remember what I say. It's just coming off how it's coming off.”

“I feel like I'm the last rap superhero. I really do. I feel like everybody else, they seem to be a bit victimized, and I don't feel like that's me.”

“People don't understand how long it really takes to find beats. Sometimes they're not all the way there, but it's elements in them I love. Then I get to take them to get chopped up. Ye got to cook over a few of them.”

“Some of the greatest hip-hop artists have incorporated elements from electronic shows into their setup. People are taking notice. It's going to be a new wave.”

“I've never been - I don't think I'm, like, a great A&R by any means. I don't even know production lingo, in all honesty.”