” Every time you learn a new language, your understanding of language overall grows, so every time I would learn new music, my understanding of music would grow because I was taken to an extreme in a different direction, and that was, in effect, carrying over into what I do. “
” Even the greatest musicians, they only represent themselves. You represent who you are and what your experiences are and what you have in your heart, and it’s the same for me. I represent who I am and what I’ve been through and what I’m bringing to the music. “
” Music is an expression of who you are, and – at least in that sense – I think I epitomize Black Lives Matter. I’m a big black man, and I’m easily misunderstood. Before I started wearing these African clothes, people would assume that I was a threat and that it was O.K. to be violent toward me. “
” All forms are complex once you get to a really high level, and jazz and hip-hop are so connected. In hip-hop, you sample, while in jazz, you take Broadway tunes and turn them into something different. They’re both forms that repurpose other forms of music. “
” I kept thinking about how ironic it is how people who live in places where there is diversity tend to love it – and the people that don’t live in particularly diverse places tend to be the ones attacking it. In a way, that’s similar to music, which is essentially the art of bringing things together. “
” Whenever my dad wasn’t practicing, he was listening to music. He had an amazing jazz collection, and my mom had stuff like Chaka Khan to help balance it out. “
” You have to dig deep to make great music, and it gets harder and harder. It’s a difficult, painful process to reach deep in there and pull out the real gems. And you have to have that little bit of anxiety of, ‘Can I really do this? Am I good enough?’ You need that in the recipe to really get down in there. “
” We’ve played so many places where, if you asked people, ‘Do you like jazz?’ they would be like, ‘Not at all.’ But I think that if you’re really putting yourself out there and really communicating, music can put you beyond people’s preconceptions, beyond their playlist. “
” Jazz is like a telescope, and a lot of other music is like a microscope. “
” I think L.A. has one of the most innovative and forward-thinking jazz scenes in the world. New York definitely has the volume – there’s more music happening in New York than anywhere else. But to me, L.A. – it’s kind of a gift and a curse. “
All 10 Kamasi Washington Quotes about Music in picture
Topics: Music quotes