Song Quotes by Boots Riley

I just make music based on what I believe.

— Boots Riley

I'm not a classically trained composer, and I can't sing very well.

— Boots Riley

I listen to everything from The Cure and The Clash to Prince and George Clinton.

— Boots Riley

The album 'Party Music' is a beautiful album, and people need to hear it.

— Boots Riley

I thought there were too many songs about people's personal lives.

— Boots Riley

Sometimes it takes time to get into what ideas actually mean to you. Even when you're not writing a song, it's like…

— Boots Riley

Music is first for me. How the music makes me feel, it's like energy. It has to match my life. What's happening…

— Boots Riley

What I wanted to do is put forth, musically, the idea that there's hope that we can change the system.

— Boots Riley

That punk approach of 'We don't wanna get big' is really a bourgeois thing. It's not a tactic of people that actually…

— Boots Riley

Either I'm really into the organizing, or I'm really into the music. As I've been going, I've been able to figure out…

— Boots Riley

I wanted to write a song about sexism, but I didn't want to do it in a mechanical way and be like,…

— Boots Riley

If people come to a record store, and they can't find your album, they buy something else.

— Boots Riley

What I'm trying to do is make music that people relate to, that talks about ideas that are personal but also make…

— Boots Riley

I just look at music as a retreat from organizing. It's like a tug-of-war with me. Music can be effective, but it's…

— Boots Riley

When I was five years old, me and my cousin got into a fistfight because when "That's the Way (I Like It)"…

— Boots Riley

I have tried to write songs quickly that get scrapped. I've also taken a long time on songs that get scrapped because…

— Boots Riley

The goal with a show is to push forward the passion in a visual and sonic way. It all comes out in…

— Boots Riley

A record is a commodity, but so is a hamburger. Just because I work at McDonald's doesn't mean I reap the benefits…

— Boots Riley

I always write knowing that people will hear it, but also hoping they'll see it. So a lot of times I make…

— Boots Riley

It's nice to be recognized for what you do, but that doesn't satisfy what I wanted out of this music, which is…

— Boots Riley

What I like about music is that you make a song, you've got your ideas in it, and people make that song…

— Boots Riley