Mark Kozelek Quotes

I've only been making records since 1991. When you look at the long-standing careers of people like Joni, it's not very long!

There's no difference in a lot of people's minds between good musicians and popular musicians.

I came over here and worked for rock magazines, and I worked for Rolling Stone, which has a very high standard of journalism, a very good research department.

There's so much excellent new music around that I can't afford to buy it all and I haven't the time to review as much as I'd like. I can't remember a better time to be a musician or to listen to music!

Backstreet has been around a long time. Normally, groups like us have a shelf life of two to four years. We always wanted to have a long stay in the music world.

The Internet has essentially democratized the music industry in terms of what is popular and it's democratized the music journalism industry as well.

Critics don't sell records, unfortunately. No one reads what they write anyway.

I've been debating with people over what an album actually means in 2018. Certain artists who have paid their dues and proven themselves have almost the privilege to put out a full length album.

I saw 'Rolling Stone' magazine once, and they were talking about the top 50 songs, and there wasn't one Sly song; how does that happen? But, Sly isn't the type to brown nose for props. He's always known what he had, what he was capable of; I'm just proud that he took the time and effort to put it to music.

There are a lot of middle of the road artists of the '70s, who aren't being played anyplace. I think it's unfortunate in a way, because it stifles you sort of, you don't get to as many people but I've had a long and wonderful career, I have no complaints.

You see so many musicians come and go. For me, it's really about the longevity in the music industry. It's not all about having a lot of hit records at one time.

I don't want to be the cranky old guy, but a lot of critics are too forgiving of mediocre artists. When you see these 'American Idol' people on the cover of 'Rolling Stone' being written about as serious artists, there's something wrong with that. You can erase them from the history of rock n' roll, and you wouldn't notice.

Leona Lewis made some really nice albums.

It's very, very exciting for me to hear my songs on the radio and to play shows and have people know the words.

The Strokes will never get anywhere after that first record.

Taylor Swift - I don't ever hear anything of hers where I'm like, 'Oh, so-and-so could've cut that.'

I remember at one point, with a previous release of mine, I stumbled upon a shareware site, and the total number of downloads was in the thousands, maybe the hundreds of thousands. But there's no doubt that the Internet and that kind of sharing has been a huge benefit for the band.

People have compared me to Lupe Fiasco, Kanye West, Eminem, and J. Cole. They bring substance and largely are all good storytellers, and those are two of my biggest strengths. It's dope to be compared to people who have longevity in the game because that's the most important thing for me: I want my name to live forever.

I want to be known for my music, and that takes time.

If Hank Williams had lived any longer, his name would have been one of the most hated in the land. Nashville would have dug him deep.

Is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that important to me? No. Is it something I've aspired towards? No.

I'll be, like, the oldest rapper alive.

What made Andy famous was the years I managed him. I created the Velvet Underground and told him not to worry about them because they would help his career. All those things I did created his fame.

I am always listening to new music and reading about music.

One thing I loved when I was growing up, you maybe saw one review from a magazine like 'Rolling Stone,' but now there are 150 reviews before an album even comes out. There are so many opinions out there, but the only one that really matters is your own.