Of course, success takes you where your character can't sustain you.
Different cultures produce a different 'cool.' And your perception of 'cool' changes depending on where you are.
You've got to live and die by your decisions.
My grandad's a gospel singer, and his children were singers, too. But I don't believe in God in the same way... not religion; it breaks us up too much. The same with musical styles - it breaks people up. I believe they are all one thing - why not put them together?
When I listen to a Coldplay record, you're gonna hear an indie band, and you know that's what you're gonna get from Coldplay. With myself, I'm not sure it's the same.
You get so close to your own music that you can't see the beauty in it. I had to learn to let go. It's good to be less precious.
I grew up not really having a father figure, and it didn't bother me, because he wasn't there in the first place. But then he started other families, and I was jealous. It was like he was happy without our family.
When I was younger, I'd be in the studio three days straight to get something right, and my manager would be like, 'Go home!' Even now, I still sleep in the studio sometimes, but I can't do it quite as often. I've got gigs; I can't have my hobo beard! But if you love what you're doing, you can't stop. It's obsessive.
I want to be a little bit brave. I want to feel scared sometimes. That's what's going to change the music business, if we have that kind of attitude.
I remember my brother came home with a bass and played a blues solo on it. I just went insane for days afterwards learning that.
My mother brought up nine children, in Hackney, and none of us are criminals, none of us in jail. Her strength made me who I am today.
One thing I always really enjoyed about Quincy Jones' production technique was that there were so many layers to every song. Like, one week you'd hear a new trumpet-line, then the next week you'd hear - be hearing a new guitar-line.
My ethos is musical freedom: to create whatever I want.
I think, as an artist, I wear a lot of different hats, and people have to join all of the dots.
I know this sounds weird, but I honestly believe music comes from the universe. Inspiration comes from the universe, and you drag it into your mind.
The first tour an artist does is a strange one... because you can never tell how the audience is going to react.
Everyone in my family has been in music - my cousins, my grandmother, my grandfather - so it's quite a big family tree.
I don't want to be someone that, when people look back, they think, 'Yeah, cool, he made us jump around for a bit in 2010.'
I try as much I can after every live performance to read all the comments my fans post on Facebook and Twitter, as this helps enormously for me to understand straight from fans what worked and what didn't.
My fans are like, 'Lab does what he does,' which is really cool. If I came out with a Jack White rock tune tomorrow, people would be like, 'Yeah, cool man,' which is great.
