I can't look at TV without seeing something that's been influenced by rap. Even commercials for cereal. When I was small, I was a fan of cartoon characters - now the cartoon characters are rapping! Rakim More Quotes by Rakim More Quotes From Rakim When you come out the streets. I ain't braggin'. I never sold drugs but I kept a joint on me. I got arrested plenty of times back when I was a juvenile. Not saying I was a bad ass. I was a juvenile coming' out to the city, to do MC conventions that Mike & Dave was doing. I had to hold myself down. Now I put the gat up. I chill. I pay more attention to life. Rakim bad-ass drug cities I think it's a combination of my peoples that I grew up under, places that I hung out is what contributed to where I'm at now. Rakim combination grew-up thinking I always had deep respect for my peoples 'cause of the love they gave me and the know how that they showed me through the years. Rakim know-how causes years I always gave my moms and pops the utmost respect. I didn't talk back to my peoples. The way they presented themselves to us, we knew. Don't talk back to moms and pops. Rakim my-mom mom way I never went to college. I think about it a lot. I can't watch a game without thinking where I would have been if I had ga head and went to college and pursued my career. Rakim college games thinking I always wanted to kind of make the listener feel like it was them that I was talking about, or to the point that I could say the rhyme, and feel like it's them saying it. Rakim rhyme kind talking Sometimes I feel I'm the luckiest rapper in the world. Rakim rapper sometimes world Playing the sax and then enjoying jazz music man. It's like I learned how to find words inside of the beat. Rakim beats jazz men I never really liked the idea of doing mixtapes but at the same time it was a big thing a lot of people were doing it and it almost got to the point where if you didn't touch the mixtape circuit it was like you didn't care. Rakim mixtapes people ideas I feel that when we leave here I think it's just another transition and whatever it is I hope I'm prepared for it. Rakim transition feels thinking I think things are gonna change. I'm gonna take the age limit off of hip hop. Rakim hip-hop age thinking A lot of the things that go on we can avoid some of it. Rakim goes-on I get the Martian look all the time even in the hood. I walk down to the shopping block and people just look at me with their mouth open man like what are you doing out here and I'm like I'm trying to get a pair of sneakers duke what's good? What are you doing [and I'm like] I'm hungry I wanted some juice and I needed some bread. Rakim sneakers block men Hopefully we get back to the raw essence of hip hop again. Rakim hips hip-hop essence When you come in the building with your guns don't take them off. Rakim building gun My son plays football so I coach a couple of his teams. My youngest son just started playing last year and I assistant coached for one of his teams. I try to be there as much as I can. I also want to kill the stereotype. I want them to respect me as a man and a father first and then if you like hip hop go buy my album. Rakim team couple football I see my pops everyday and that's what I wanted. Rakim pops everyday wanted I don't try to go to the studio and make a single. I just do whatever I feel. Rakim studios feels trying When I hear my first album today I hear myself reading my rhymes but I'm my worst critic. Rakim albums reading today I started studying in '85 and got knowledge of self and started spitting. What was going on was taking the understanding of what I was reading and applying it with my life and applying it with my rhymes. Rakim understanding reading self
