--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I rap, I get to express myself in a…" description: "\"When I rap, I get to express myself in a way where putting words together is like poetry, and sometimes it's better to talk in certain expressions than..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a1/wyclef-jean-4734_certain_when-i-rap-i-get-to-express-myself-in-a_2889118.png" --- # When I rap, I get to express myself in a way where putting… ![“When I rap, I get to express myself in a way where putting words together is like poetry, and sometimes it's better to talk in certain expressions than sing, you know? So I love, I love to rhyme when I want to express certain things.” quote by Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a1/wyclef-jean-4734_certain_when-i-rap-i-get-to-express-myself-in-a_2889118.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a1/wyclef-jean-4734_certain_when-i-rap-i-get-to-express-myself-in-a_2889118.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a1/wyclef-jean-4734_certain_when-i-rap-i-get-to-express-myself-in-a_2889118.png) > “When I rap, I get to express myself in a way where putting words together is like poetry, and sometimes it's better to talk in certain expressions than sing, you know? So I love, I love to rhyme when I want to express certain things.” [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rap lets me poetically express myself; sometimes spoken word works better than singing. **In simple terms:** Rap is poetic speech, sometimes better than singing. Key Takeaway Use rap for personal expression. Themes music poetry self‑expression Mood creative expressive Type musical artistic When to use this quote - studio recording - live performance - songwriting Key Concepts hip‑hop culture lyative storytelling Questions to Reflect On - How does rap differ from singing for you? - When is spoken word more effective? A Different Perspective Audience may prefer melody over rap. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Express Myself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/express-myself/) [Expression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expression/) [Like Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-poetry/) [Love Rhyme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-rhyme-4047162/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Poetry Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry-better-3268680/) [Rap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rap/) [Rhyme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rhyme/) [Rhyme Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rhyme-want-4047161/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Together](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [Bad, quirky poetry might be better than some of the good stuff, because it really comes from the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-hines/bad-quirky-poetry-might-be-better-than-some-of-the-good-stuff-because/) [Cheryl Hines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-hines/) > [Real poetry, is to lead a beautiful life. To live poetry is better than to write it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/real-poetry-is-to-lead-a-beautiful-life-to-live-poetry-is-better-than/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's something we, guys, have all done. Made tapes for girls, trying to impress them, to meet them on a shared plane of aesthetics.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cusack/it-s-something-we-guys-have-all-done-made-tapes-for-girls-trying-to/) [John Cusack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cusack/) > [“Poetry is not a lost art. Poetry is better than ever. Of course you’ve got the usual gang of idiots (as the Mad magazine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/poetry-is-not-a-lost-art-poetry-is-better-than-ever-of-course-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [I am composed of contradictions, which is why poetry is a better form for me than philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/czeslaw-milosz/i-am-composed-of-contradictions-which-is-why-poetry-is-a-better-form/) [Czeslaw Milosz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/czeslaw-milosz/) > [What a lot of people don't know is that Wyclef started off as a battle rapper, when he decided that he would rhyme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/what-a-lot-of-people-don-t-know-is-that-wyclef-started-off-as-a/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [Christmas poem to a man in jail hello Bill Abbott: I appreciate your passing around my books in jail there, my poems and stories.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/christmas-poem-to-a-man-in-jail-hello-bill-abbott-i-appreciate-your/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [A verbal art like poetry is reflective; it stops to think. Music is immediate, it goes on to become.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/a-verbal-art-like-poetry-is-reflective-it-stops-to-think-music-is/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) > [A theology should be like poetry, which takes us to the end of what words and thoughts can do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-armstrong/a-theology-should-be-like-poetry-which-takes-us-to-the-end-of-what/) [Karen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-armstrong/) > [No art form points like poetry to this originality of language as to its essential and abiding concern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-harrison/no-art-form-points-like-poetry-to-this-originality-of-language-as-to/) [Thomas Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-harrison/) > [“She’s like poetry. Like prose and love letters and lyrics, cascading down the center of a page.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/she-s-like-poetry-like-prose-and-love-letters-and-lyrics-cascading/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) > [Money is like poetry because both involve learning to communicate in a compressed language that packs a lot of meaning and consequence into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lanchester/money-is-like-poetry-because-both-involve-learning-to-communicate-in/) [John Lanchester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lanchester/) > [“What is truth?” I said. “Is it the shallow assurance that something literally took place, or is it about something far deeper, something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lister/what-is-truth-i-said-is-it-the-shallow-assurance-that-something/) [Michael Lister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lister/) > [Most songwriting like poetry takes a careful selection of words. Sometimes you're just channeling something and a selection of words come out that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vance-joy/most-songwriting-like-poetry-takes-a-careful-selection-of-words/) [Vance Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vance-joy/) > [... mathematics is very much like poetry ... what makes a good poem -- a great poem -- is that there is a large…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lipman-bers/mathematics-is-very-much-like-poetry-what-makes-a-good-poem-a-great/) [Lipman Bers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lipman-bers/) ## More by Wyclef Jean > [I like to go against the grain, against what's out there. Every day is like a challenge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/i-like-to-go-against-the-grain-against-what-s-out-there-every-day-is/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [Coming from Haiti and growing up in Brooklyn, there's a lot of European influence when I get dressed up. I wear a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/coming-from-haiti-and-growing-up-in-brooklyn-there-s-a-lot-of/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [I'm like Cab Calloway: I love the entertainment, and I've loved entertaining people ever since I was little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/i-m-like-cab-calloway-i-love-the-entertainment-and-i-ve-loved/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [All that violence in the world, we need to stop that](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/all-that-violence-in-the-world-we-need-to-stop-that/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [That's the best way to feed the human mind. That's how Bob Marley did it. He never put it in your face. 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It's beautiful, and I can get to the city way quick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/i-like-bergen-county-because-it-s-nice-and-quiet-it-s-beautiful-and-i/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [When I was 11 years old, I started playing guitar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/when-i-was-11-years-old-i-started-playing-guitar/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [I haven't accomplished nothing yet - I have a long way to go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/i-haven-t-accomplished-nothing-yet-i-have-a-long-way-to-go/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [There's not a hip-hop artist that didn't snatch of piece of Bob Marley. It's totally impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/there-s-not-a-hip-hop-artist-that-didn-t-snatch-of-piece-of-bob/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [I decided to do what I do when I was 2 years old. At 2 years old, you know, I heard the sound of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/i-decided-to-do-what-i-do-when-i-was-2-years-old-at-2-years-old-you/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [I'm like a hippie. At the end of the day, that's what my voice caters to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/i-m-like-a-hippie-at-the-end-of-the-day-that-s-what-my-voice-caters-to/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [On Sundays I give the sermons like my dad used to give. I utilize it as a revolutionary tool, as a thinking tool, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/on-sundays-i-give-the-sermons-like-my-dad-used-to-give-i-utilize-it/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) > [In the beginning I had women problems, 'cause you know, I represent for the guys. But I was actin' a fool, whilin' out. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyclef-jean/in-the-beginning-i-had-women-problems-cause-you-know-i-represent-for/) [Wyclef Jean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) [Explore all 107 Wyclef Jean quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyclef-jean/) ## More Certain quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. 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