Quotes from KRS-One

The Temple of HipHop has declared HipHop its own religion. We believe HipHop is divine. HipHop proves the existence of God.

I'm not an executive. I can do it, I have the mind for it, but there's a life that you have to lead, and you have to give up your creative freedom. That's what I don't want to give up.

I don't sell millions of records. As a matter of fact, I'm not even interested in selling millions of records. I enjoy MCing. I make a decent amount of money. I can feed my kids. I keep a roof over my head. I don't have to sell a million records to maintain my lifestyle.

The only time you had blacks, whites, and Latinos jamming together was in hip-hop. It's an unsung history.

Every ten years, we get a new old school. In 1987, we thought 1977 was the best era in hip-hop. Here we are in 2007, and we're discussing '97/'98, when 50 Cent just started.

There has always been a conscious effort to destroy any upliftment of the black race, whether that be physically, mentally, psychologically, morally, culturally, or economically.

I'm not a fan of public school at all; I think it's one of the greatest catastrophes of American history.

Hip Hop is an idea. It is the pursuit of one's authentic being through the arts. It is not a physical thing; it is an attitude - even an aptitude.

Kings lose crowns but teachers stay intelligent

Teachers teach and do the world good, Kings just rule and most are never understood

People say I contradict myself because I come gangsta and teach at the same time. I don't want to be too much on either side, but I do want to speak to all audiences.

High respect goes out to our mothers, our single mothers. This is why today the real community uplifts femininity and holds womanhood above, not equal to, masculinity.

When I was about 15 years old, I began to embark on an MC career but also to study philosophy with an emphasis on theology.

Don't you think it's time we thought about the future? Whether our children are gonna be winners or losers

Rap is something you live; hip hop is something you do.

Before I came out, there was no such thing as a black conciousness movement. Kids on the street didn't know who Malcom X or Martin Luther King was until rap let them know.

Where I go, rap goes. Rap is like my dog; it's like my little pet. And where I go, I lead my little pet with me.

I kind of backed into rap music. I thought I was going to do comic books or graphic art.

When rap music needed to have a teacher, I became it.

I'm the most humble rapper in the industry.

Ask any rapper or singer what artist they are an expert on. What artist are they looking to emulate, and really, what artist is the one person they are an expert on? You see, if you want any kind of longevity, if you want any kind of legacy, you need to know what ancestral line you are from.

Maybe I'm the prophet of hip hop for real. Maybe I do come with some kind of divine principle behind me, because I know that every battle I've ever had I've always won.

Illiteracy causes violence. If you don't have enough words in your vocabulary, you can't even seek your way out of a situation.

There is no forgiveness, justice, or healing on any level when hate is involved.