Paul Mooney Quotes

I will not let my sales figures dictate what I say on the blog, because the blog is what I want to say.

The band has always stayed close to its fans and not sold out. That's a very rare thing. I can see how rare that is having been outside of the band for eight years. Maiden has integrity. I think people appreciate that.

If you consider the definition of authenticity, it's saying something and actually doing it. I write my own songs. I made my own videos. I pick my producers. Nothing goes out without my permission. It's all authentic.

Leave my image alone... I will behave as I think I should and I will not change anything.

Independence .... is loyalty to one's best self and principles, and this is often disloyalty to the general idols and fetishes.

There's a lot of things I would definitely go to bat for in Hawaii. I've been all over that stuff. If someone told me to be quiet about that because of my profession, no. That's my people.

I swore to my parents that no one would ever be able to buy me.

Truth doesn't need a PR. If you believe it, go out there and speak it. Do not expect anyone to hold your hands and support you.

I am so honest that at times people get offended by what I say. In our industry, truth is not really appreciated. I love to be of my own. I try spending quality time with my family, my two very close friends and my pet Liam.

We only do what we think is good and what we're happy with. I do that in stand-up, I even do it with my children's books. I don't do market research, I don't have focus groups, I don't care. I don't care if it fails, honestly. I'd rather have something that's completely mine fail than something succeed that I'm not proud of.

I go out in the streets, and I go to shows, and I see my fans turn from "I like your last rap" to "I feel your movement; you're keeping it all the way real." One thing I've always said is that's never been my story, and I'm not going to go back on my word.

Cause I'm still hood, Hollywood couldn't change me.

I've never compromised who I am not ever. If I've gotten anywhere in my life it's been on my own merits.

No matter how far you go, if you can't go back to the essence, you're not sayin' nothin'. The essence for me is hip-hop. But the hip-hop community I came up in isn't a loyal community.

I have a lot of respect for people, and I feel they are far more sensible and responsible than to ape or imitate somebody.

Roman Reigns never asked me for my help, that's not who he is.

It's just about being honest. I listen to a lot of stuff that's out there, some of which I wrote, and I'm like, 'Where is that? Where's the honesty?' So that's what I want to get to in my music now.

As for my relationship to Beethoven, I admire people who can say what they really think. It's as though he's saying, 'That's how I feel about the world, and I don't care what people may say.' His music is pure and honest. Beethoven never pretends to be anybody else.

I don't switch my act up to win over the crowd. I'm more like, 'You came here... this is what I do.' I dig my heels in harder if I feel like they are not on board.

This band doesn't owe anything to anybody.

I believe that my work has been well-received because it is authentic. All people really want are authenticity and truth.

I love Andrew Weatherall; he's so real and uncompromising and a sweetheart.

I'm not going to compromise or not say what I want for anyone.

I've never said anything that I didn't want to say on a record, ever.

I would never be a sellout, but you can never be a sellout to kids. Kids is kids!