Mos Def is an American hip hop artist, actor and activist from Brooklyn, New York City, New York. About.com listed him as the 14th greatest ‘MC’ of all time on their “50 greatest MC’s of our time” list.
We’ve put together this collection of the best Mos Def quotes:
37 Greatest Mos Def Quotes
1. “African art is functional, it serves a purpose. It’s not a dormant. It’s not a means to collect the largest cheering section. It should be healing, a source a joy. Spreading positive vibrations.” – Mos Def
2. “Everything’s got space between it, the planets, trees, your eyes. Your eyes get too close together, it’s a whole different world. You can lose perspective.” – Mos Def
3. “I can’t control what people think. I’m not trying to manipulate people’s thoughts or sentiments. I write all the time. You have to experience life, make observations, and ask questions. It’s machine-like how things are run now in hip-hop, and my ambitions are different.” – Mos Def
4. “I don’t hate nobody. I hate certain conditions that are inflicted upon the people – and they’re helpless with it.” – Mos Def
5. “I don’t want to waste anyone’s time or money. I want to give people some truth and positive heart lift.” – Mos Def
6. “I get reminded a lot of the time that my life is a little bit different, but I’m just trying to keep it as regular as possible because I like it that way.” – Mos Def
7. “I just don’t think it’s very dignified to ask people to like you. You can just wind up being somebody’s ottoman.” – Mos Def
8. “I’m a passionate person. I’m a lot of things, like most people are. Most people are dynamic. The focus is not on me though, I’m a screen. The aim is to always keep myself in the position where the screen is clear.” – Mos Def
9. “I’m not shy about heated debate or passionate discourse, but when people get crazy or rude, that’s a buzz kill. There’s got to be a better code of conduct, some basic etiquette.” – Mos Def
10th of 37 Mos Def Quotes
10. “It’s possible and available to any artist to be himself or herself on their own terms, to be accepted and embraced by black people. You don’t have to be a thug to get love from black people.” – Mos Def
11. “That idea of peace and love toward humanity shouldn’t be nationalistic or denominational. It should be a chief concern for all mankind.” – Mos Def
12. “To me, the job of the artist is to provide a useful and intelligent vocabulary for the world to be able to articulate feelings they experience everyday, and otherwise wouldn’t have the means to express in a meaningful and useful way.” – Mos Def
13. “You want to know how to rhyme, then learn how to add. It’s mathematics.” – Mos Def
14. “All the things that are worth doing, take time.” – Mos Def
15. “Focused. I’m a hustler. And my hustle is trying to figure out the best ways to do what I like without having to do much else.” – Mos Def
16. “I come from a family of very devout, praying people. That idea of peace and love toward humanity shouldn’t be nationalistic or denominational. It should be a chief concern for all mankind.” – Mos Def
17. “I don’t mind being black. I’m black out loud. It’s more than the people that they are, it’s the condition that they represent.” – Mos Def
18. “I feel like being into the beat of your own drum has become too prominent in the culture.” – Mos Def
19. “I guess something that you love to do, you gotta ease up off it and give it a little space, come back and be fresh to it.” – Mos Def
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20. “I never had any ambitions of being a movie star or anything like that, but you know, this is nice.” – Mos Def
21. “I’m growing as an individual, but your always growing. All of my albums are snapshots of where I am artistically.” – Mos Def
22. “I’m trying to get low. People’s personalities can get in the way of their own work.” – Mos Def
23. “Mos Def is a name that I built and cultivated over the years it’s a name that the streets taught me a figure of speech that was given to me by the culture and by my environment and I feel I’ve done quite a bit with that name and it’s time to expand and move on.” – Mos Def
24. “That’s what I’ve been trying to strive for – to draw a clear picture, to open up a new dimension.” – Mos Def
25. “What I take from writers I like is their economy – the ability to use language to very effective ends. The ability to have somebody read something and see it, or for somebody to paint an entire landscape of visual imagery with just sheets of words – that’s magical.” – Mos Def
26. “And remember don’t high post when you’re far from home, and high posting when you’re all alone.” – Mos Def
27. “Good art provides people with a vocabulary about things they can’tmarticulate.” – Mos Def
28. “I didn’t want to have to deal with having any moniker or separation between the self that I see and know myself as.” – Mos Def
29. “I don’t wanna get into that space where a lot of guys now, their solo album is like eight or 10 songs with other people, you don’t get an idea of who this guy is. I just wasn’t interested in that.” – Mos Def
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30. “I feel like I was the only person who was capable of making this type of music in this type of way. I don’t rap like nobody, I don’t try to sound like nobody.” – Mos Def
31. “I have no confidence issues with the impact or the quality of the music. No one in hip-hop, before this point and to this point, with all due respect, has done this.” – Mos Def
32. “I was taught when there’s somethin’ you can change around keep quiet, you got nothin’ to complain about.” – Mos Def
33. “I’m just an artist and I’m doin’ what I like to do.” – Mos Def
34. “It wouldn’t be fair to cast aspersions on an entire cultural movement based on the actions of a few. To quote my grandfather, ‘One bad apple don’t spoil the whole bunch.'” – Mos Def
35. “My presence speaks volumes before I say a word.” – Mos Def
36. “There are a lot of people who call themselves teachers or leaders, but they’re really just propagandists.” – Mos Def
37. “You have to experience life, make observations, and ask questions.” – Mos Def
Summary
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