I'm not going to be one of those people who says, 'I'm a showrunner; I'm not a black showrunner.' I'm black when I go to sleep. I'm black when I wake up, period. It doesn't affect my perspective on everything, but at the same time, it's who I am, and I'm proud of it.
'The Wire' is, by far, my favorite television show of all time. And I've always said that my aspirations for 'Luke Cage' was that it would be 'The Wire' of the Marvel television universe.
As long as black people preserve their culture in Harlem, Harlem will always be alive.
To me, Harlem is one of the most important places on the earth, particularly when it comes to talking about African Americans.
Honestly, what 'Luke Cage' is - it's a hip-hop Western. And you have Luke Cage as the sheriff of Harlem.
The reason that Shaft has a dominant theme song is because James Bond has a dominant theme song.
All Blaxploitation is, is the opportunity for an African-American cast or lead actor or actress to do the same things that a white action hero gets to do.
The first time that I met B.I.G. was in 1994, summer of '94 - I believe it was August. I think it was right after 'Ready to Die' came out.
Hip-hop is as much an attitude and perspective as it is a music form.
People underestimate hip-hop the way they have sometimes underestimated comic books.
Our Luke Cage is a black hero, not a hero who happens to be black.
All black art, post-slavery, has always tried to prove in its own way that a black life is the equivalent of anyone else's.
Fatherhood is something that is personal to me because I didn't grow up around my father.
Let's face it: there aren't a lot of black superheroes. So, in dealing with a black superhero, you're going to deal with ugly history and the beauty of history.
Even though my approach is slightly different, the Luke Cage of 'Jessica Jones' is no stranger to the Luke Cage of Marvel's 'Luke Cage.' It's really a continuation to a certain extent. It's just got a little different flavor, but it's still the same suit.
The first 'Creed' is one of the best movies I've ever seen.
When you scratch the soul of hip-hop, you find R&B and funk but also reggae.
I finally achieved my dream by being a TV showrunner.
My era was '90s Carhartt-and-Timberlands hip-hop. That's my rock n' roll.
Most superheroes, when you look at origin stories - before they invent their costume, they just go with what's around.
