Kanye West

It wasn't until I hung out with Dead Prez and understood how to make, you know, raps with a message sound cool that I was able to just write "All Falls Down" in 15 minutes.

If I don't win, the award show loses credibility.

I am God's vessel. But my greatest pain in life is that I will never be able to see myself perform live.

God show me the way because the Devil trying to break me down

I said Yo Jay, I can rap. And I spit this rap that said I'm killin' ya'll *****s on this lyrical sh*t, mayonnaise colored benz, I push miracle whips.

All these walls that keep us from loving each other as one family or one race - racism, religion, where we grew up, whatever, class, socioeconomic - what makes us be so selfish and prideful, what keeps us from wanting to help the next man, what makes us be so focused on a personal legacy as opposed to the entire legacy of a race.

I didn't want to play it boring and safe. I also didn't want to innovate too much. Second albums, man, they're even scarier than first ones.

Know your worth! People always act like they're doing more for you than you're doing for them.

I refuse to accept other people's ideas of happiness for me. As if there's a 'one size fits all' standard for happiness.

They say you can rap about anything except for Jesus, that means guns, sex, lies, video tapes, but if I talk about God my record won't get played Huh?

Having a Rolex or a Benz is not something that actually represents your success because there’s always something more expensive to buy. Success is really being able to do things for others as well as the people around you and yourself.

An artist's career doesn't happen in the cycle of one week of news. An artist's career happens in a lifetime, and if you're a true artist you're willing to die for what you believe in.

People asked me to change my name for [808s]...I think the fact that I can't sing that well is what makes "808s" so special.

Went from most hated to the Champion God Flow,_x000D_ _x000D_ I guess that's a feelin' only me and LeBron know.

If you’re a Kanye West fan, you’re not a fan of me, you’re a fan of yourself. You will believe in yourself. I’m just the espresso.

As a man I am flawed, but my music is perfect.

I wouldn't even say that I'm a rapper. I'd say I'm more of a messenger.

I fervently believe that, as someone has said before, "When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change." I want to help change the way young people look at school, and hence, the way they look at their futures.

Believe in your flyness...conquer your shyness

I believe in myself like a five-year-old believes in himself. They say look at me, look at me! Then they do a flip in the backyard. It won't even be that amazing, but everyone will be clapping for them.