“I'm an independent thinker. And I'm not the poster child for any movem...” — Mos Def Quote

“I'm an independent thinker. And I'm not the poster child for any movement. I'm trying to support whatever's right no matter where it is.”

“Hip-hop is the last true folk art.”

“In the early '90s, when I really started to find my voice, I was reading a lot of books, and I was moved by the writers, like Chinua Achebe, and I wanted to be able to write rhymes that were as potent as what I was reading.”

“I love making independent movies, and that's pretty much what I'm going to be doing for the rest of my years.”

“Even though I haven't released a song since 2010, I have still performed, so I don't feel I have been completely away from music. I have been away on a mainstream level, of course. But releasing a single this way - on my own independent record label - is more fun.”

“I vicariously lived the life of an independent producer from the time I was 4 years old.”