Tonedeff Krs Quotes

Believers of Jesus be denouncing Satan on every level,
But every Halloween they're dressin' like devils. ~ KRS-One

Too many MC's take that word 'emcee' lightly;
They can't Move a Crowd, not even slightly. ~ KRS-One

If you're true to the upliftment of people and the unity of people, raising the self-worth of people, then you live within your means. But the problem is that we're looking at the grass on the other side, saying, "That's greener. I want to be in the thug market, but I want to be a conscious rap artist." It doesn't work like that. ~ KRS-One

Trust in God, that's where the crown is at. It's not in what you get, it's what happens after that. ~ KRS-One

You know, you don't see with your eyes
You see with your brain
And the more words your brain has
The more things you can see ~ KRS-One

Cops just surrounding me with pistols everywhere.
They put me in the backseat of their car handcuffed,
Pushed out them chests like they're big rough and tough.
A cop come and said 'You'll never sell your guns now.'
I said 'It doesn't matter, you'll sell them anyhow.
You take the guns from me, you sell them for a fee;
Anyway you put it, they'll get in the city!' ~ KRS-One

You know something, it's best no to have what you need
because then, you start looking for what you need
and make it what you need. ~ KRS-One

I haven't come to tell you I've got juice
I just produce, create, innovate on a higher level ~ KRS-One

Educate yourself make your world view bigger, visualize wealth, and put yourself in the picture ~ KRS-One

The hip-hop that I really connected with was Public Enemy, KRS-One, Ice Cube, and N.W.A. That late '80s and early '90s era. The beginning of gangster rap and the beginning of politically conscious rap. I had a very immature, adolescent feeling of, "Wow, I can really connect with these people through the stories they're telling in this music." ~ Jess Row

Hip-hoppers are not interpreting what hip-hop is, and when we do interpret it, we interpret it as something immature, unorganized, and outlaw. ~ KRS-One

There could never really be justice on stolen land. ~ KRS-One

This album is moments that I haven't done before, like just my voice and drums. What people call a rant - but put it next to just a drumbeat, and it cuts to the level of, like, Run-D.M.C. or KRS-One. ~ Kanye West

Take a look at the police and how they treat you,
Take a look at these corporations that cheat you.
Democrats and Republicans are all see-through.
Now we votin for the lesser of two evils ...
Man, don't let 'em deceive you.
This is an autocracy, not a democracy,
But to call this a democracy without mock interest
In the laws of society? That's called hypocrisy. ~ KRS-One

Black people are just constantly immature in their thinking, undisciplined, and we suffer as a people. This is not about race in the sense that black people got to get something better than whites or Latinos or Asians. This is just basically that we keep complaining about what we don't have and what we can't do, and then, when we get in positions to do stuff, we fight amongst ourselves like savages. ~ KRS-One

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. ~ KRS-One

You sleep with a man, that's your husband. So make sure before you lay down, you love him. ~ KRS-One

So you think that hip-hop had it's start out in Queensbridge, If you popped that junk up in the Bronx you might not live. ~ KRS-One

If I were to critique myself - step out of KRS objectively and look at him - I would say that KRS has introduced the concept of being hip-hop, not just doing it. The concept of rap as something we do, while hip-hop is something we live. The concept of living a culture. Don't just look at hip-hop as rap music, see it as a culture. ~ KRS-One

The single most important contribution that I can offer, the strengthening of people's spirit and soul, the strengthening of families, the unity of a husband and a wife. To me, that's most important. Without that, we have nothing. If a son doesn't respect a father, if a child doesn't respect a parent, then we're lost. ~ KRS-One

If Hip Hop has the ability to corrupt young minds, it also has the ability to Uplift them. ~ KRS-One

KRS-One is one of my favorite rappers ever. I actually don't even know why I have this on my computer, but I do. I really like this album, Criminal Minded. ~ Girl Talk

Yo Premier, why these rappers so soft?
They corny ass raps be makin me doze off. ~ KRS-One

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

Kings lose crowns but teachers stay intelligent ~ KRS-One

The God of your understanding, has chosen you and you've agreed
To be here in this space and time to do something, that only you can do
Now I won't stand here to try and tell you what it is
But deep, inside yourself
As you take time to uncover, and ask yourself some vital questions
Like - what is it that brings me peace, what is it that brings me joy?
What do I love doing?
What am I willing to become highly skilled at doing?
What part can I play for the betterment of the society
And the world in which I want to live?
When you begin to ask yourself those real questions
And it doesn't have to be done in a formal way
It can be done just like we're speaking, right now
Ask yourself the question
Look at how you see yourself in just a year from now
And then go forward
And if you have children or even if you don't have children
Now begin to, look at your future beyond
The space and time that you are
Now visualize exactly, the way that you desire to live
Don't be afraid to, dream ~ KRS-One

I think that all journalists, specifically print journalists, have a responsibility to educate the public. When you handle a culture's intellectual property, like journalists do, you have a responsibility not to tear it down, but to raise it up. The depiction of rap and of hip-hop culture in the media, I think, is one that needs more of a responsible approach from journalists. ~ KRS-One

As a conscious rap artist, you should not want to be in a gangster market. You should be trying to establish your own market, create a place where you can be yourself and make some money and feed your family. ~ KRS-One

Are you tired of lyrical liars, passing fliers,
Wannabe MC's, but really good triers,
Tripping over mic cords, getting you bored,
A total fraud, this kind of thing I can't afford! ~ KRS-One

I'm not saying I'm number 1, oh sorry I lied.. I'm number 1,2,3,4 and 5 ~ KRS-One

I feel like your city - with hip hop in particular, because we're always beating our chest and shouting where we're from - your city is just as influential as your parents. Even the grimy, hardcore gangster rap from New York - KRS-One and Wu Tang, the stuff acknowledges it. ~ Talib Kweli

You got to have style, and learn to be original. ~ KRS-One

Stop the negativity and control our creativity ~ KRS-One

Hip-Hop is being spoken through spirituality ... Meaning that you'll be able to listen to it spiritually for yourself. ~ KRS-One

Rappers spit rhymes that are mostly illegal,
MC's spit rhymes to uplift their people. ~ KRS-One

No [other rappers are on my level], none of them. Here, let me put it like this in the sky, there are a million stars, but when the sun appears, you see none of them. I am the sun. ~ KRS-One

I'd rather make one righteous dollar on my level
Than make a million dollars spittin' rhymes for the devil. ~ KRS-One

Love is like graffiti on the train,
Meaning love isn't easy to explain ~ Tonedeff

You were put here to protect us.
But who protects us from you? ~ KRS-One

I break an emcee off proper
Yo don't check me,
Ask your Moms and Pops,
Yo they respect me,
But here you stand, tryin' to get yours, but gettin' nothin'
You probably can't spell "Boogie Down" or "Productions" ~ KRS-One

You are not doing hip hop; you ARE hip hop. ~ KRS-One

The single most important lesson I learned is that black people are the cause of black people's demise. ~ KRS-One

Hip-hop as a culture itself goes through stages. It grows - it's breathing, living. I've noticed that we usually start off conscious, then we wind up very highly sexual, and then we thug it out. Then things get a little funny again, with comedy and that kind of thing. ~ KRS-One

Do you ever think about when you outta here?
Record deal and video, outta here!?
Mercedes Benz and Range Rover, outta here!? ~ KRS-One