There's this notion that music has to be confined to some small, simple place to be popular, something I never believed. — Kamasi Washington Music Copy Share Image
My hope is that witnessing the beautiful harmony created by merging different musical melodies will help people realize the beauty in our… — Kamasi Washington Beautiful Copy Share Image
This precious thing of empathy and love and understanding is something we have to hold and appreciate and protect. — Kamasi Washington Empathy Copy Share Image
I can't really worry about nuclear war any more than I can worry about the aliens coming. — Kamasi Washington Fear Copy Share Image
Someone like Donald Trump can't control the way I show love to my brother. He can't control the way I feel about… — Kamasi Washington Brother Copy Share Image
There's a deeper level of healing that needs to happen for the world in general. There's a mass of people who are… — Kamasi Washington Broken Copy Share Image
At a certain point, when there's a barrier between you and what's right, eventually you have to decide you're not going to… — Kamasi Washington Allow Copy Share Image
By the time I was about 15, I was out playing gigs and knew I was going to be a musician. — Kamasi Washington About Copy Share Image
Every day we're here is an opportunity to do what we can to make the world right, to help someone close or… — Kamasi Washington Day Copy Share Image
I used to tell my friends, 'Art Blakey is way more gangster than Eazy-E!' I ended up getting my friends into jazz,… — Kamasi Washington Art Copy Share Image
What fixes your spirit when Ferguson happens? When Trayvon Martin and those kind of things happen, they hurt your spirit; it hurts… — Kamasi Washington Heart Copy Share Image
I started playing with this band, the Polyester Players. It was my introduction into funk. So I went and got a James… — Kamasi Washington Band Copy Share Image
West Coast hip hop was the sound of my neighbourhood. It was something I could relate to because it had a sound… — Kamasi Washington Felt Copy Share Image
All forms are complex once you get to a really high level, and jazz and hip-hop are so connected. In hip-hop, you… — Kamasi Washington Broadway Copy Share Image
Becoming a musician is a strange thing. It's not all cupcakes and ice cream. You're trying to master an instrument, and you… — Kamasi Washington Better Copy Share Image
When I was working on 'To Pimp A Butterfly' and 'DAMN.,' I'm really making music for Kendrick. It's a different mindset than… — Kamasi Washington Butterfly Copy Share Image
I started playing drums at three, then piano at five, then clarinet. But it wasn't till I picked up a saxophone aged… — Kamasi Washington Drums Copy Share Image
When I was younger... we used to go to this place called Rexall to play 'Street Fighter.' At Rexall, there would be… — Kamasi Washington Different people Copy Share Image
Malcolm X's separatist ideas were situational. If you think about where African-Americans were in the 1940s and 1950s, we needed to step… — Kamasi Washington Clarity Copy Share Image
As a musician, your instrument is almost predetermined. I had played drums, piano, clarinet, but when I heard Wayne Shorter play the… — Kamasi Washington Drums Copy Share Image
We started 'Heaven And Earth' in 2016. That was probably the heaviest touring year of my whole life. We probably did almost… — Kamasi Washington Earth Copy Share Image
Every time you learn a new language, your understanding of language overall grows, so every time I would learn new music, my… — Kamasi Washington Direction Copy Share Image
You have to dig deep to make great music, and it gets harder and harder. It's a difficult, painful process to reach… — Kamasi Washington Deep Copy Share Image
As a person who grew up in Los Angeles - that's a very diverse place - I've always felt like that diversity… — Kamasi Washington Blessing Copy Share Image
This notion that I was somehow special and deserving of a more involved education was wrong.I was smart at taking tests, but… — Kamasi Washington Deserving Copy Share Image
I think L.A. has one of the most innovative and forward-thinking jazz scenes in the world. New York definitely has the volume… — Kamasi Washington Gift Copy Share Image
Funk could very easily be called jazz, but you call it funk. Does that really matter? People dig that they associate themselves… — Kamasi Washington Funk Copy Share Image
Music is this medium to express who I am and what I've been through and my thoughts and what my feelings on… — Kamasi Washington I am Copy Share Image
My dad was a professional musician; my mom played, too, but just for fun. All my siblings played. The house was full… — Kamasi Washington Dad Copy Share Image
We've played so many places where, if you asked people, 'Do you like jazz?' they would be like, 'Not at all.' But… — Kamasi Washington I think Copy Share Image
When I was about seventeen, I had a group called the Young Jazz Giants. We played all originals. When we would finish… — Kamasi Washington Best Copy Share Image
People like to compartmentalise music, especially African-American music, but it's really one thing. One very wide thing. I mean, it's like all… — Kamasi Washington Day Copy Share Image
L.A. has always been hated on so much. I remember, the first time I went to New York, I was at jam… — Kamasi Washington First time Copy Share Image
When I was younger, I'd be walking down the street and suddenly panic because I had a cool idea and no way… — Kamasi Washington Cool Copy Share Image
In the '80s, a lot of kids, if you were kind of bright, you got bussed to schools out of your community.… — Kamasi Washington Around the corner Copy Share Image
A legacy is a lot of times determined by how people accept your music. And sometimes people's legacy starts late or starts… — Kamasi Washington Control Copy Share Image
Los Angeles has always been overlooked as far as jazz, and just high-level music in general. But, like, my dad's a musician,… — Kamasi Washington Dad Copy Share Image
We learned at a young age, with our dad, that even if you weren't doing something, you had to look like you… — Kamasi Washington Age Copy Share Image
One of the things I did learn from 'The Epic' was that we don't have to feel so much pressure to conform… — Kamasi Washington Epic Copy Share Image
When I started saxophone, my dad took me to my uncle's church, and I started playing there, too. At its best, music… — Kamasi Washington Best Copy Share Image
