Be fluid. Treat each project differently. Be water, man. The best style is no style. Because styles can be figured out. And when you have no style they can't figure you out. Jay-Z More Quotes by Jay-Z More Quotes From Jay-Z Racism is taught in the home. We agree on that? Well, it's very hard to teach racism to a teenager who's listening to rap music and who idolizes, say, Snoop Dogg. It's hard to say, 'That guy is less than you.' The kid is like, 'I like that guy, he's cool. How is he less than me? Jay-Z teenager rap home As fate would have it, Jay's status appears Jay-Z fate perfect goodbye You put the right artist on the right track in the studio and leave the door open to let God in. Jay-Z artist letting-go doors Wherever I go, I bring the culture with me, so that they can understand that it's attainable. I didn't do it any other way than through hip-hop. Jay-Z hip-hop culture way Hip-hop is a perfect mix between poetry and boxing. Jay-Z hip-hop boxing perfect When you're growing up, your dad is your superhero. Once you've let yourself fall that in love with someone, once you put him on such a high pedestal and he lets you down, you never want to experience that pain again. Jay-Z growing-up dad pain The fans get to see you, and you can do great by your record if you have a great performance or a great night there. That's all part of the business. But at their core, awards shows are not really a sincere thing. For a lot of years, the artists had to pay to play their own set. Jay-Z awards artist night Everyone who makes music is a good collaborator at their foundation because in order to make music, you have to connect to it in a way that other people can't. Jay-Z foundation order people I don't even like the word politics. It implies something underhanded and I think we need less government. Jay-Z government needs thinking One of the reasons inequality gets so deep in this country is that everyone wants to be rich. That's the American ideal. Poor people don't like talking about poverty because even though they might live in the projects surrounded by other poor people and have, like, ten dollars in the bank, they don't like to think of themselves as poor. Jay-Z talking country thinking The day Obama got elected, the gangsta became less relevant. Jay-Z gangsta relevant rapper I can think of no one more relevant and credible in the hip-hop community to build upon Def Jam's fantastic legacy and move the company into its next groundbreaking era. Jay-Z hip-hop moving thinking The Nets' a stone throw from where I used to throw bricks Jay-Z rap hip-hop stones I got this black chick, she don't know how to act Jay-Z rap hip-hop men It's hilarious a lot of times. You have a conversation with someone, and he's like, 'You speak so well!' I'm like, 'What do you mean? Do you understand that's an insult? Jay-Z insult speak mean I really just like breaking down the barriers, whether it means doing an album with Linkin Park, an album with R. Kelly, or playing at the Brandenburg Gate with Bono. Jay-Z parks albums mean People who don't know you, you don't know their motives. They smile at you all day, "Oh, that's great. You've done it again! You're the greatest!" And that's not good for an artist. Jay-Z done artist people But this is one of the things that makes rap at its best so human. It doesn't force you to pretend to be only one thing or another, to be a saint or a sinner. It recognizes that you can be true to yourself and still have unexpected dimensions and opposing ideas. Having a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other is the most common thing in the world. The real bullshit is when you act like you don't have contradictions inside you, that you're so dull and unimaginative that your mind never changes or wanders into strange, unexpected places. Jay-Z rap angel real Everyone needs a chance to evolve. Jay-Z evolve chance needs Ex-D-boy, used to park my Beamer Jay-Z parks hip-hop boys