Tinashe Quotes

The biggest misconception about us is that we're just a rock band. We think our music is a cross-section of many genres; a hybrid of what the six of us have grown up on.

I wouldn't categorize myself as R&B or hip-hop. I don't really know how to categorize myself. I'm still working out where I fit with that stuff. I kind of think of myself as pop.

I came up playing in both punk rock bands and hip-hop bands, and I found a more universal way of reaching people, especially with music that has a message to it.

They believed you can't mix rock, country, and rap, and that crossover is dead. I always knew it would work. And it will always work as long as you're really into it and like what you're doing.

What I love about Beyonce is she's not a slave to a genre of music.

I'm quite an eclectic musician.

My favorite band of all time is The Clash. The thing I love about The Clash is they started out as guys who could barely play three chords. They dabbled in reggae, punk, rap, jazz. They came to a sound that could only be defined as The Clash. It was impossible to say what it was. I admire them for that.

It's sort of what jazz would be if it stopped being snobby and what rock would be if it stopped being stupid.

I don't really see huge barriers between any styles of music.

None of my songs sound the same. None of them. I take R&B beats and put it as a rap song or hip-hop beats and put them as a R&B song. A lot of people are boring. I don't like boring music. Everybody sounds the same, like they copying.

I just don't feel limited by genre.

We don't want to box ourselves within any type of genre, you know? Whatever feels good, if it moves us and we like it, we get on it and make it our own. That's what we do.

I've been criticized for doing so - crossover music. But I never claimed to be a pure dancehall artist.

I've always had influences from all over the place, like Mr. Bungle and Primus. As a band, we try not to focus too much on where it's coming from, because we're always listening to music.

I listen to all types of music so I'm influenced by everything.

I never excluded any genre on my first record.

I am a big fan of music in general. I listen to all genres: hip-hop, R&B, whatever sounds good to me; it doesn't matter to me where it comes from - there are no boundaries, no fences. If I like it, then it will inspire me to create.

What I do isn't black music; it's just my music.

I just loved classical music, but I also loved playing rock guitar, and I loved playing piano, so it was a natural thing that those things would merge at some point.

My music is a direct reflection of the eclectic person I am. I don't like to be stuck in an R&B box.

I love mixing up my genres.

I really love music that's on the periphery of not fitting into a clear genre. I felt like I was constantly being described as something I didn't really feel like I identified with.

All along, I did what I was comfortable doing, which was to play the music I enjoyed and try to stretch the parameters a bit. Country and bluegrass and folk were my foundation.

With my music, I don't have to stay in one lane. One day I'm in Motown, and the next day I'm in reggae.

I like the idea of an eclectic approach, incorporating jazz with other forms and other genres of music.