--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Before I was rapping, I was always around…" description: "\"Before I was rapping, I was always around the rap game, even though I was in the streets. I would be at all the parties and all the events, and I was p..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/fat-joe-3437_cats_before-i-was-rapping-i-was-always-around_2866371.jpg" --- # Before I was rapping, I was always around the rap game… ![“Before I was rapping, I was always around the rap game, even though I was in the streets. I would be at all the parties and all the events, and I was pretty hard to miss. I was one of the few Spanish cats sitting there with jewelry on, Dapper Dan suits. It was pretty hard to miss me.” quote by Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/fat-joe-3437_cats_before-i-was-rapping-i-was-always-around_2866371.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/fat-joe-3437_cats_before-i-was-rapping-i-was-always-around_2866371.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/fat-joe-3437_cats_before-i-was-rapping-i-was-always-around_2866371.jpg) > “Before I was rapping, I was always around the rap game, even though I was in the streets. I would be at all the parties and all the events, and I was pretty hard to miss. I was one of the few Spanish cats sitting there with jewelry on, Dapper Dan suits. It was pretty hard to miss me.” [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early immersion in a music scene builds credibility and identity before formal participation. **In simple terms:** Being present builds reputation before starting. Key Takeaway Leverage community presence to launch a career. Themes music culture identity networking Mood confident proud Type career motivational When to use this quote - club scenes - music collaborations - career launches Key Concepts hip‑hop street credibility branding Questions to Reflect On - How did you transition from observer to artist? - What role did community play? A Different Perspective Visibility without skill may lead to superficial fame. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) [Game](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/game/) [Rap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rap/) [Rapper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rapper/) [Rapping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rapping/) ## Related quotes > [Versace on my cabin. I use to like rapping. Until I found out I'm Rap game Samuel L Jackson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riff-raff/versace-on-my-cabin-i-use-to-like-rapping-until-i-found-out-i-m-rap/) [Riff Raff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riff-raff/) > [I'm thinking of the kids of the next generation and the music that they need to hear. Before, I was just rapping to rap.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/astro/i-m-thinking-of-the-kids-of-the-next-generation-and-the-music-that/) [Astro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/astro/) > [I like to consider myself a student of hip hop. There's a certain level of certification and wit and craftsmanship that comes with rapping.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cakes-da-killa/i-like-to-consider-myself-a-student-of-hip-hop-there-s-a-certain/) [Cakes da killa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cakes-da-killa/) > [To have so many years in the rap industry and so many number one songs, and sold so many millions of records, introduced the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/to-have-so-many-years-in-the-rap-industry-and-so-many-number-one/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [Rap Is a Game And You Can't Win This Game Without Practice And Hard Work...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soldier-the-rapper/rap-is-a-game-and-you-can-t-win-this-game-without-practice-and-hard/) Soldier The Rapper > [Rap game Julio Franco, Chuck Norris, Texas Ranger/ Ice on my fingers look like I slap-boxed a penguin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riff-raff/rap-game-julio-franco-chuck-norris-texas-ranger-ice-on-my-fingers/) [Riff Raff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riff-raff/) > [This rap game is just WWF; everybody wants points off somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-jeezy/this-rap-game-is-just-wwf-everybody-wants-points-off-somebody-else/) [Young Jeezy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-jeezy/) > [I chose to deal with the underdogs on '1 Train.' I could've got the biggest superstars in the rap game, but why do that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asap-rocky/i-chose-to-deal-with-the-underdogs-on-1-train-i-could-ve-got-the/) [ASAP Rocky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asap-rocky/) > [As for the rap game, I feel like the music I got, the rap game wide open for me to take over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boosie/as-for-the-rap-game-i-feel-like-the-music-i-got-the-rap-game-wide/) [Boosie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boosie/) > [Young kids out here see what's on TV and feel like they can start rapping. They think rappers are rich and really have their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahki/young-kids-out-here-see-what-s-on-tv-and-feel-like-they-can-start/) [Rahki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahki/) > [Let me keep it 100% real with you, when there was park jams nobody rapped at a park jam when I was rapping and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormega/let-me-keep-it-100-real-with-you-when-there-was-park-jams-nobody/) [Cormega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormega/) > [I would challenge more hip hop artists that are rapping about what it's like to be real and the social ills that we face,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-would-challenge-more-hip-hop-artists-that-are-rapping-about-what-it/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [Аfter all the beats and rhymes, I felt like everybody around me was rapping and so I was like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremih/fter-all-the-beats-and-rhymes-i-felt-like-everybody-around-me-was/) [Jeremih](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremih/) > [It's hard to find rap that I love, you know. I'm one of those rapping a\*\* rappers, but I just fall into a different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eskeerdo/it-s-hard-to-find-rap-that-i-love-you-know-i-m-one-of-those-rapping-a/) [Eskeerdo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eskeerdo/) > [Rapping and singing are not two polar opposites. There's so much middle ground. And I think there's a lot of people who find that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-koenig/rapping-and-singing-are-not-two-polar-opposites-there-s-so-much/) [Ezra Koenig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-koenig/) ## More by Fat Joe > [I have been Fat Joe since I was a kid. It's always been my name and always will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/i-have-been-fat-joe-since-i-was-a-kid-it-s-always-been-my-name-and/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [There's no such thing as too much. If there's too much, then that's a great thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/there-s-no-such-thing-as-too-much-if-there-s-too-much-then-that-s-a/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [I love the quality of TIDAL. I appreciate what they're trying to do and what they're trying to accomplish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/i-love-the-quality-of-tidal-i-appreciate-what-they-re-trying-to-do/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [I love owning my masters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/i-love-owning-my-masters/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [I'm trying to work, be diverse and multi-talented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/i-m-trying-to-work-be-diverse-and-multi-talented/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [Fat Joe ain't out here trying to battle-rap everybody in the world. That's not what I'm about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/fat-joe-ain-t-out-here-trying-to-battle-rap-everybody-in-the-world/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [I make hit records. I make hit records to motivate the people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/i-make-hit-records-i-make-hit-records-to-motivate-the-people/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [It feels like Gangstarr is the purest group in hip-hop. They was shooting videos on the beach in the winter when the water was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/it-feels-like-gangstarr-is-the-purest-group-in-hip-hop-they-was/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [See, me, I don't run away. During my successes or my failures, I put it on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/see-me-i-don-t-run-away-during-my-successes-or-my-failures-i-put-it/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [It's like hip hop all over again, back in the '70s back in the Bronx, when it was just bubbling. But it's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/it-s-like-hip-hop-all-over-again-back-in-the-70s-back-in-the-bronx/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [As a little kid, I watched hip hop get created. So it's an honour for me to represent the Bronx, the motherland of hip…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/as-a-little-kid-i-watched-hip-hop-get-created-so-it-s-an-honour-for/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [“Real G's do real things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/real-g-s-do-real-things/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [I would love to coach. I'm not saying I'm qualified to do it in the N.B.A., but I would love to try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/i-would-love-to-coach-i-m-not-saying-i-m-qualified-to-do-it-in-the-n/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [I could battle rap forever, but it's a joke to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/i-could-battle-rap-forever-but-it-s-a-joke-to-me/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) > [Latinos finally have a genre of music that represents them, and they're supporting reggaeton in such huge numbers that people can't help but notice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fat-joe/latinos-finally-have-a-genre-of-music-that-represents-them-and-they/) [Fat Joe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) [Explore all 131 Fat Joe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fat-joe/) ## More Cats quotes > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [I liked Cats as a kid, now its hard to say. I dont live in New York anymore so dont see so many.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-moennig/i-liked-cats-as-a-kid-now-its-hard-to-say-i-dont-live-in-new-york/) [Katherine Moennig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-moennig/) > [“The next day, Trixie pawed Maddie awake, patting her arm gently. “I’m up,” Maddie groaned, blinking sleep out of her eyes. “Mrrow.” Trixie peered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jinty-james/the-next-day-trixie-pawed-maddie-awake-patting-her-arm-gently-i-m-up/) Jinty James > [“So Nikki came aboard as Jaqueline's spare cat, presumably in case our prime cat, Eliza, goes on vacation, takes industrial action, or requests a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-s-wren/so-nikki-came-aboard-as-jaqueline-s-spare-cat-presumably-in-case-our/) Christopher S. Wren > [One reason why my memory decays is that I have three cats, all so loving and insistent that they play cat's-cradle with every train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-townsend-warner/one-reason-why-my-memory-decays-is-that-i-have-three-cats-all-so/) [Sylvia Townsend Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-townsend-warner/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. Much family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-s-an-interesting-fact-that-fewer-than-17-of-real-cats-end-their/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [The dog is guided by kindly instinct to the man or woman whose heart is open to his advances. The cat often leaves the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-repplier/the-dog-is-guided-by-kindly-instinct-to-the-man-or-woman-whose-heart/) [Agnes Repplier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-repplier/) > [When I see things through my eyes, I don't want to ever just be really negative towards someone's performance. There are many ways to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stone-cold-steve-austin/when-i-see-things-through-my-eyes-i-don-t-want-to-ever-just-be-really/) [Stone Cold Steve Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stone-cold-steve-austin/) > [One cat just leads to another. The place is so damned big it doesn't really seem as though there were many cats until you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/one-cat-just-leads-to-another-the-place-is-so-damned-big-it-doesn-t/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [“In the morning, when she wishes me to wake, she crouches on my chest, and pats my face with her paw. Or, if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/in-the-morning-when-she-wishes-me-to-wake-she-crouches-on-my-chest/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [Kittens can happen to anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gallico/kittens-can-happen-to-anyone/) [Paul Gallico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gallico/) > [“Curiosity killed the cat, but not before teaching her that honey bees are not sweet, tweeting birds are slow to react, mice can serve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/curiosity-killed-the-cat-but-not-before-teaching-her-that-honey-bees/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [“Quin took on the air of someone who has just realized it's time for the yearly visit to the spinster great-aunt in a desperate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-fecteau/quin-took-on-the-air-of-someone-who-has-just-realized-it-s-time-for/) [Amy Fecteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-fecteau/) > [“Save for the ancient Egyptians, he found, virtually no one kept cats as pets until the latter part of the 1700s. The first people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-mcauliffe/save-for-the-ancient-egyptians-he-found-virtually-no-one-kept-cats-as/) [Kathleen McAuliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-mcauliffe/) [Browse all 3,253 Cats quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cats/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Before I was rapping, I was always around the rap game, even though I was in the streets. 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