Dave East Quotes

Listening to others does not mean you should sound like them; find your own voice by telling stories as authentically as possible.

I grew up around a bunch of rappers and street dudes and they were always like: 'yo! She's a little different but she's her.' They respected it because you know it wasn't forced, I wasn't posing to be something I wasn't.

To me, punk is about being an individual and going against the grain and standing up and saying 'This is who I am'.

I always thought that there was something in hip-hop culture that was the misfit of all the musical styles, where they didn't really belong. They're kind of like, 'No, we're a real culture! We're not going anywhere, you can't get rid of us!' I really liked that there was a rebelliousness about it. I connected with that.

In stand-up it really helps to play yourself and talk about your own feelings. You cannot fail to be original if you're just talking about what you think about X, Y and Z. Unless you've got a twin brother who's also a stand-up.

I don't chase what I hear on the radio. I try not to compete with anybody.

As a self-published author, you have the choice. Embrace the power to create a book that is truly yours. Don't be a whiner or a copycat.

Any kind of creativity is not settling down into a happy little space. I don't try to be mellow or anything. I think I have quite... my voice is what it is, no matter what I'm singing, it's always going to sound like me. There's not too far I could go. I sound like myself. I hope that I haven't put any boundaries on anything.

Personal style isn't simply an exercise in parroting but rather an exhibition for our own stories - from the gait of our walk to the rhythm of our speech to the manner in which the necktie falls from the knot.

Tell your own story, and you will be interesting.

You should be unique, you should be confident, and that's how people remember who you are. You have to be willing to share who you are and your story.

I don't wanna be like everybody else, I don't wanna rap like everybody else.

I like to tell my own story using my personality and my insight, the way I see things.

My style is raw; my style is '95. My style is what I live. My style is my story.

Being faith-driven, being a hip-hop artist, being artistic in an urban context - all of those things make you unique, and you put yourself on the outside of what's considered the norm.

I feel like one of my strengths is writing about stories that are unique to me but somehow relate with everyone, and the one thing I've found is that if you make a song wholly unique to you, then you don't have to compete with everybody, because nobody else can make a song like you.

As an artist, I try not to sound the same as others. Or even as myself.

I came out with sounds that didn't sound like the usual hip-hop beat. I took that chance because no one would identify with me if I sound like somebody who's already out.

It's like everybody try to sound the same exact way because they think it's going to get them some fame, but nah. You've got to be different.

We're not perfect, we're not clean cut. We're just trying to be ourselves.

I didn't want to imitate anybody. Any movement I knew, I didn't want to use.

In life, finding a voice is speaking and living the truth. Each of you is an original. Each of you has a distinctive voice. When you find it, your story will be told. You will be heard.

By putting myself out there the way I've been doing people see me as a real person. Even though I do character voices and funny noises the stories are still real and I put them all out there.

I'm a big fan of Lady Gaga. I think she's kinda what modeling is about in a way: Unique-ness, different-ness, edginess, quirkiness is actually special and I think her message is - I wouldn't say it's exactly like my message - but there are similarities in embracing your uniqueness. When she talks about being born this way, I really think she's absolutely fabulous.

There's a rebel lying deep in my soul. Anytime anybody tells me the trend is such and such, I go the opposite direction. I hate the idea of trends. I hate imitation; I have a reverence for individuality.