“Becoming a father made me a lot more sentimental than I ever was before. I never cried at movies before I became a parent. I feel music more intensely. I think of my political ideas as ideas about how I want to interact with other human beings as opposed to abstract theories about how the world should be.” ThinkingWorldWantFeelsShouldHumansMadeIdeasPoliticalFatherParentHuman BeingsTheoryBecomingAbstractCriedSentimentalBecoming A Father Author:Boots Riley
“What the media is playing is what people want is really a false idea. Capitalism and people who control the market have a large hand in everything. It doesn't have anything to do with figuring out what the crowd wants to hear. It has to do with the media deciding what they think people want to hear.” PeopleThinkingWantIdeasHandsMediaCapitalismCrowds Author:Boots Riley
“I had no idea how much the stuff I was doing was affecting people outside Oakland. At the time, also, hip hop wasn't able to tour because all these clubs that let hip hop come in now, they would never have let hip hop come in.” PeopleIdeasAbleStuffHip HopClubsHipsNo IdeaHopsOakland Author:Boots Riley
“Sometimes it takes time to get into what ideas actually mean to you. Even when you're not writing a song, it's like that.” WritingMeanIdeasSometimesSongTake TimeIt Takes Time Author:Boots Riley
“It's usually important to me to get my idea out first because a lot of times my ideas will seem weird to musicians.” FirstsImportantIdeasSeemsMusician Author:Boots Riley
“What I'm trying to do is make music that people relate to, that talks about ideas that are personal but also make that connection to trying to make revolutionary change, and I don't need to change my music to get to a certain audience.” PeopleNeedsTryingIdeasCertainAudienceConnectionsRelateRevolutionaryNeed A ChangeRevolutionary Change Author:Boots Riley
“Rappers are usually rapping about knowledge they think people need to get by in the world. If there's no movement that gives the idea that the knowledge people need is how to take over the system, what they see is that people need to know how to hustle; people need to know how to survive.” PeopleIfsThinkingKnowsWorldNeedsGivingIdeasKnow HowMovementRapRapperHustle Author:Boots Riley