I am, always have been, and always will be proud of my Nigerian heritage.
A classic man is a distinguished man. He cares about taste and his craft. He's all about the simple model that I live by - eat, drink, be swanky, and have fun getting the job done. He makes sure that he's excellent in all things and that he cares about his neighborhood immensely.
A great tailor is like a great personal trainer - they tailor that suit to your natural physique.
Swanky means classy and funky.
Everything you touch touches you.
The trick of Afrobeats is it doesn't just move your upper body, it moves your hips as well, and I think that's what people have been missing in popular music for a while. I think that's what people need around the world.
I describe myself as a big kid with an old soul, I'm very playful whimsical, but I definitely have that old soul as well.
I reached rock bottom halfway through college. And it was - because of all the pressure that I think we're talking about right now - the pressure to learn how to budget, the pressure to really abandon everything that you ever learned. You don't have a comfort zone anymore. You don't have your neighborhood. You don't have your family with you.
I wanted to remind myself and others of the old Jim Crow, so that we can remind ourselves that we're still living in the new Jim Crow. I feel it's important to dress in the fashion of the times.
Not unlike our country's history, my personal history was founded upon an unfortunate history of racial conflict between black and white.
Does Martin Luther King really want his birthday commercialized?
Yes, it's still a man's world, unfortunately, and we have a long way to go in this country and all countries - but there's something to be said for just feeling the spirit of a true man, and I think that's what 'Classic Man' speaks to.
It's better to do your purpose imperfectly than to do someone else's purpose perfectly.
People thought 'Classic Man' was processed. But then they realized, 'Oh, this guy actually is that man, and he actually dresses like that.'
Every single place that's brushed upon me has made me the artist that I am - from Nigerian Highlife music and the vocal melodies that I grew up on when I would be sitting with my father and his fellow chiefs, to the funk and freeness of the Bay Area groove, to L.A.'s smooth G-funk legacy, Brooklyn's lyricism, and now Atlanta's trap history.
My nickname is 'Chief' because my father was a chief in Nigeria.
For me, I wear a suit because I need to remember what's happened before me.
Ever since the decision of Robin Thicke and Pharrell, we believe that it was important to make sure that we are safe. When that Robin Thicke verdict came out, we realized that the game had changed in music.
When I originally came to the U.S., my mother came with a couple hundred dollars to her name. I didn't know we were struggling because she hid that from me. But it was definitely a struggle to get through life and get through school.
First of all, I respect The Game. He's trail-blazed for artists like myself. I appreciate him, having - living in L.A. myself and knowing what he stands for and what he stood for.
