Quotes from Princess Nokia

Jordans? No. I thought mohawks, leather jackets, studs, piercings, colored hair, leopard print, platforms, all the bondage wear, I thought that was the coolest thing.

Everything really came together on '1992.' That isn't to dismiss my earlier works - they were great - but when I focused myself on hip-hop everything just clicked.

I like to honor my West African and Taino ancestry, I consider it sacred and divine.

People look down on teen moms and young mothers when they are the most gracious and significant women on this Earth. They sacrifice their freedom and their lives to give life.

I prefer my partner to have profound, deep intellect, a profound education, but where their education comes from is no preference of my own.

Sometimes people think that I'm maybe pretentious or just weird, a fraud, or fake, because I have a formal education and speak properly and give people respect.

My pheromones and my chemistry and the way I walk - I am divine feminine energy.

I'm 100 percent in control of my artistry, music, and finances.

That's why I created Smart Girl Club in the first place because I really wanted to combat the non-inclusion that I felt in a lot of places.

I'm a Puerto Rican woman whose family has roots in Regla de Ocha, also known as Santeria.

I was always so many different things, all at once: a little hood, a little punk, a little grunge, a little glam, a little gay. I have a whole bunch of flavours.

I just want to purify my body, purify my mind, and make good music and keep living my life.

I'm a big believer in letting your freak flag fly.

Growing up, I loved Boy George, George Michael, Annie Lennox, Queen, Freddie Mercury, Celine Dion, Barbra Streisand and Diana Ross.

I was just a queer theater kid from New York City.

The music that I will continue to make will certainly draw upon those experiences of being a loner, of being an emo goth kid, of being a New York City aficionado, of being a witch, a feminist, a brown radical woman.

My mother picked my name with a spiritual intention: Destiny, 'what was meant to be.' She was a very special woman, and a gifted witch.

I am a gorgeous woman. That's not me being egotistical or narcissistic. It's just a fact, I'm a knockout.

When I started out rapping, I became very frightened by the idea that people were trying to pigeonhole me. That's usually what happens to most female rappers. They fit in a box and there's a prototype or person they're compared to.

I used to go onstage with no makeup on. And then I realised I was looking a little crazy and I had to grow up a bit and look more presentable as a woman.

I actually didn't own any North Face until I was 18 and the first one I had was a gorgeous Blue Extreme and I loved it.

I feel like I've had a really great time just being able to make all the music that I've always liked to make and listen to and expressing it in different ways.

Black people created punk - the band Death was way before The Ramones. Same with Bad Brains. If you think about it, the wool has been pulled over our eyes.

My parents were artists, bohemian, hanging out a lot.