August Alsina

I feel like God gave me my life for that reason to share with other people that may be like me or not like me.

When I do music, I'm really getting the devil up off me.

I feel hurt and pain times a million, all the time.

Whoever wants to be caught up in my life, first of all, you should be living yours because I'm damn sure not worried about your life.

I'm so focused that sometimes I feel like I don't need to eat.

There are Black women who die while trying to give life to newborns because Black people are always overlooked, under-cared-for, underprivileged. It's been what it has been since the beginning of time. I know from my own experience dealing with the health-care system, having to spend so much money to go to the doctor and still be overlooked.

I think there are small treasures and blessings inside of our imperfections. But there are so many people in the world that oppress you for being an individual if you don't fit in with the rest of the crowd, if you don't run with the herd. It's always perplexing to me when I see people mad at other people for being who they are.

I've always been the underdog, and I've always had to work much harder than the next person just to get a look. But I feel like that's Black people as a whole, to be honest with you. We have to do so much more and work so much harder to get certain kinds of looks within this industry.

People think that money and fame fixes and changes so much. Money does give you assistance and resources in this life. But you think that life will become easier, and that's not necessarily true.

Nothing scares me. Nothing actually shocks me anymore.

I'll tell you what bothers me. This music business is so crazy. They think everything is a game, or everything is a fad or trend to win. I see people saying, 'My next album is going to be my honest album, the whole truth, nothing but the truth, my deepest secrets, the soundtrack to my life.'

I know how people see me. People see me as a rebel. People see me as maybe even ignorant. People see me as a threat or rude or whatever. It's a lot of people who just don't know me.

Nobody can say anything to take what's for me away from me. And I live by that.

I never want to be the one causing a ruckus. I never want to be problematic in any kind of way.

I'm pretty expressive. And when I love something or love someone, I express that.

I don't have any reason to lie about anything.

Every lesson man, every, every relationship, every experience is a blessing. You learn from it, whether good or bad.

I could never say that I regret being given the gift of experience and love.

What's perplexing to me is that I never think it's anybody's business to know my business.

That's what media do. They make you out to be a monster.

People like me don't expect to live past 24.

I like Kendrick a lot.

I just feel like no one is the same.

No one is doing what I'm doing and I'm not doing what they're doing.

Who influenced me the most? I'd have to say Lauryn Hill, I think she influenced me the most.

Always stand 100 with yourself.

Nothing is held back on 'Testimony.'

As an artist, I struggle with how much of myself to give to the people. How much I want my personal business to be judged.

When I started singing, I was going to school. I remember some of the people in school singing, and they had a choir. I would just watch and listen. Finally I started at least attempting to try to do what they was doing. When I was younger, we started going to church. I can't say that we were always, you know, the most church-going people.

I'm not a rapper. I stay in my lane.

I want to make music to lift the people.

I have trust issues.

I feel like I don't fit in. There's not a lot of outlets for urban music, for black artists who don't have that crossover thing going early on.

Hope - I wanted to give to that to the people. When you do that, you have to be willing to be unpopular. It's not the formula for radio songs.

Pride definitely causes a lack of communication.

Pride is a big thing that gets in the way of a lot of relationships.

I'm always so overly transparent that sometimes I'm like, damn, am I saying too much? Should I say this? Should I not say this?

People will throw stones and hide their hands and then get back and play victim.

I don't like drama. Drama actually makes me nauseous.

People can have whatever ideas that they like. But what I'm not OK with is my character being in question.

Reality is I'm sick all the time.

The people that you think are supposed to be there for you and be happy for you - instead they want to tear you down.

Of all my childhood memories, I don't have any good ones.

I feel older than I really am. It's because of the cards I was dealt.

Having life taken away from you for a little while forces you to be more open-minded and to go live.

When you come into this game and this industry, it's kind of like really being born again, because you don't know too much about it.

We all battling different things. Me? I'm just able to channel that through my music.

I want to live my life on full. I want to die empty, whatever that means - giving myself to my three kids now, giving myself to love or a relationship, giving myself to my career, devoting myself to being a healthy person. I have to give my full self to something, because that's what makes me feel alive.

I had over 10 seizures.

I have a liver disease where my autoimmune system is fighting against itself.