It’s All In Your Head

by RUSS

Twenty-six-year-old rapper, songwriter, and producer Russ walks his own path, at his own pace. By doing so, he proved that he didn’t need a major label to surpass over a billion streams on Spotify/Apple Music, get on Forbes’ 2019 “30 Under 30”, make the Forbes’ “30 Under 30 Cash Kings” at number 20 for most earned, sell out arenas across the US and around the globe, and become one of the most popular and engaged rappers right now. His method was simple: love and believe in yourself absolutely and work hard no matter what. In this memoir, Russ inspires listeners to walk to their individual rhythms and beat their biggest obstacles: themselves.

With chapters named after his most powerful and popular songs, It’s All in Your Head will reflect on the lessons he’s learned from his career, family, and relationships. He’ll push listeners to bet on themselves, take those leaps of faith, and recognize struggles as opportunities. It’s All in Your Head will give listeners an inside-look at the man and the motivation behind the music. A lover of books like The Alchemist and The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, Russ delivers a short, potent, inspirational, raw, and honest book that gives listeners a way to find self-belief and unlock their potential. Fans already rely on Russ as an inspiration of confidence; now, he is taking it to the next level with this

Key Takeaways

★Self-belief comes before success & is necessary

★You have to be in love with what you are doing because it’s going to take WAY LONGER than you expect

★Delusion- Persistence- Gratitude (go from dream life to reality)

★There are no failures, only stepping stones to success

★All success is a manifestation of what’s been in your head

★Dreams only work if you do

Introduction

Music is the lens through which I see the world. I express my truth through my music. Music is one of the most pure examples of a higher power. You can’t touch music. It’s a feeling. Music is the soul stripped away from the body, in audio format. When you record music, you transcend your body. It is an example of manifesting—bringing something into existence using what’s in your head.
Making music teaches me so much about myself and the world. But it isn’t music itself that teaches me, it is the pursuit of my greatest passion. Whatever that thing is that takes you to a higher level, that connects you to the best possible version of yourself, that helps you live purposefully—THAT’S YOUR PASSION.
But my success actually has very little to do with the music. I’m simply a vessel that communicates my higher purpose. Connecting to your higher purpose is essential.
But passion and self-belief are paramount to any endeavor. Your success is directly related to your self-belief.
- I couldn’t even get to the point where I could make a song that you love if I was not mentally equipped to go through ten years of sounding terrible. Sure, now the song sounds good, but that took years, not just of practice but of delusional self-belief. It was a long process of anonymity, putting out songs that no one heard—and the whole time maintaining an unwavering belief that on any given day I could wake up and discover that my music had blown up.
There are three essential qualities required for turning your real life into your dream life:
- Delusion
- Persistence
- Gratitude
Delusion will give you faith when there is absolutely nothing in your present life that indicates you should believe. It is ABSOLUTELY all in your head.
Persistence will provide strength to keep going.
Gratitude allows you to appreciate all that you have and the achievement of your goals, both small and large. What you think about, you bring about. The positive energy generated by your gratitude will yield more blessings, and you will see that your dream will continually unfold.

I know it sounds nutty, but I genuinely believe, with every ounce of my body, that I have

never failed. You could say putting out eleven projects and none of them blowing up was a

failure, but I don’t look at it like that. Where you see failure, I see stepping stones.

To win, you need to get out of your own way. You decide whether to be your greatest obstacle or your biggest fan.
The secret is being able to ride out the time between when you’re the only one who believes that what is in your head is actually going to come to fruition, and the moment when it actually does. That period is when everything can go left. It can make the most confident mind doubtful. That’s where you lose. You don’t lose to a competitor or to an industry or to a boss—you lose to yourself. Defeating your own self doubt is the biggest obstacle to overcome.
My confidence, or cockiness (whatever you want to call it), isn’t fueled by a sense of superiority and it isn’t based on my success. Yes, I believe I’m great, but I believed that when I was a kid making shitty music in my basement—that’s how I got to where I am today. I’m successful because I am confident, not the other way around.
THERE IS NO CEILING. It’s all in your head.

Chapter 1 Manifest and Speak Your Goals Into Existence

YOUR THOUGHTS HOLD WEIGHT IN THE UNIVERSE.

All my success is a manifestation of what’s been in my head since I was this scrawny, little seven-year-old kid standing on the fireplace hearth in our living room, clutching the notebook that I’d written my songs in and rapping my heart out as if I were onstage. Before I knew who I was, I knew who I was.
- “Before I had my car, I used to be walking to the train practicing my Grammy speech” – Kanye West
- “I’d imagined having medals around my neck, chalk dust on my legs, and a bright smile on my face… I’d then visualize making the national team, imagining it like a movie.”- Simone Biles.
- “Every master visualizes their success.”-George Leonard, Mastery
Manifesting isn’t simply thinking that something is going to happen; it is encompassing that reality with your entire being.

Put yourself into the life that you want.

Close your eyes and surround yourself with whatever you are manifesting. Immerse yourself in that moment. More important than what it looks like, embrace what it feels like. Make yourself feel the pride and joy of walking into your new home. Imagine the thrill of answering the phone and being offered your dream opportunity. Can you feel your spirit heat up? Your cheeks aching from smiling? That warm electricity shooting up the back of your neck? Can you feel the irrepressible joy?
Transmute those feelings into your work every day as you move toward what you want. Feel the success so deeply that you genuinely believe it’s going to happen tomorrow. If it doesn’t happen tomorrow, believe it is going to happen the next day.

For years I sat in my parents’ basement, working all hours of the night and day. During the time I was down there making music that people didn’t care about, I didn’t hope or pray; I simply believed that my music was amazing and that I was already successful, though no one knew it yet.

While I was waiting, I got this jumbo-sized notepad and a red Sharpie and I scrawled out a bunch of signs and hung them around my room.

I HAVE A PLATINUM DEBUT ALBUM.

I AM THE BIGGEST ARTIST IN THE WORLD.

I’M THE MOST SOUGHT-OUT PRODUCER IN THE WORLD.

I wanted to wake up surrounded by my goals. Back then I had to hype myself up. I wasn’t merely hyping myself up on the surface; deep down I knew I was as great as I thought I was.

This was the universe telling us we were on the right path. Bugus and I went back to the basement studio and worked our asses off.

People tend to talk about all the things that are going to happen in the future. They say, “I’m going to be successful, or I’m going to be a big artist.” That’s a mistake. When you set your achievement in the future, you are already putting it off. The future never comes. It will always remain the future, and you will always remain chasing it and waiting for it. You need to say, “I am successful.” You need to believe that so deeply that you are just waiting for the world to catch up.

Chapter 2

LIVING OFF DELUSION IS HEALTHY.

Everything is unrealistic until it’s not.
Follow your dream despite its contradiction with the known reality and the rational expectations and assumptions of other people. You must believe in what you are doing before anyone else can.
If you feel you need advice or praise, you’re the problem. If the fourteen-year-old me played me his music and asked for my honest reaction—though I would never have said this to him—would be, “This is terrible. I really don’t see this working.” But because I’ve been the fourteen-year-old with terrible beats and a twenty-six-year-old with a successful career, I know that if you’re seeking outside validation, you are already losing to yourself.
You have to be delusional to even start, let alone to keep going. You have to be the first person who thinks that you’re going to achieve what you have set out to do.
That audacious self-confidence fed into everything else—it allowed me to put my work out into the world, it kept me striving to be heard, and it gave me the balls to think that on any given day I could wake up a star.

“EVERYBODY IS A STAR

SOME JUST DON’T KNOW HOW TO SHINE”

Joey Bada$$ was my early indicator of how tangible the dream was. Without knowing it he fed my delusion. I easily could have met him and thought, I’m still so far away. Instead, I felt even closer to my dreams. In 2018 at my sold-out show at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, I brought Joey out to perform his hit single “Devastated.” The delusion paid off.
Get Delusional.

Chapter 3 The Formula You vs. You

EVERYONE NEEDS SOMETHING TO BELIEVE IN.

That thing should be you and what you COULD be if you just believe in yourself. We are all magicians—turning nothing into something is sheer magic.
Despite popular opinion that you have to “see it to believe it,” it’s actually the opposite . . You have to believe it to see it.
The same things that make up stars make up us. We are all connected to the energy of a higher power so, in essence, having faith in the universe, or god, or whatever you want to call it is having faith in yourself and vice versa.
Self-belief is what makes you think you can run the race in the first place. However, to cross the finish line, you have to perform alchemy. You have to transmute that conjured belief into action.
What we fill our heads with holds real power. Positive thoughts, affirmations, and a vivid, visceral feeling about what you want will put you on the wavelength to perform the magic trick: turning nothing into something.
The danger of having your dreams deferred lies in self-doubt. Dreams drowning in self- doubt will remain trapped on the ocean floor until your self-belief decides to rescue them. If what’s in your head is negativity, you are tying cement blocks to your own feet. Doubt blooms like algae, and insecurity will lock you in your own cage. You have the key.

Chapter 4 Boomerang What You Throw Out Will Come Back

TRUST THE WHAT. FUCK THE WHEN.

The come-up was way longer than I thought it was going to be. If you had told me when I was seventeen that nothing I did would blow up until I was twenty-three, or that at age twenty-six I still wouldn’t have a Grammy, I simply wouldn’t have believed you. I always thought it was going to happen tomorrow. But I loved the work so much that it wasn’t work, and I lost track of time. I didn’t have a routine; I didn’t know whether it was Monday or Wednesday. Was the sun up or down? That was how I tracked the movement of time. Get so lost in your passion that the numbers on a clock aren’t relevant. Time isn’t real, just clocks.
Time is an obstacle you put in your own way. All you have to do is believe that it is going to happen. You can’t put a deadline on success; you can’t put a deadline on manifestation.
YOU MUST DETACH FROM THE WHEN.
You send things into the universe and they come back to you, but they don’t always come when you expect or want them to. You have to know WHAT you want. If you are too attached to the WHEN, you will be fighting the natural flow of the universe.

Don’t get caught up in the WHEN. Just know the WHAT.

Never forget the WHY.

This ability to be flexible and maintain your belief is especially essential when your plans go awry. You have to bounce from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm. This trust allows you to be at peace and to freely throw your intentions into the world. Have faith that they will come back. Trust the what. Fuck the when.

Chapter 5

FUCK THE POINTS, PLAY FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME.

The game is your passion. Your passion is that thing that connects you to the truest version of yourself. Points are just the signifiers—the money, the accolades—and while they may be pleasurable, they don’t sustain you. If you play for points, you will quit. The game is what keeps you going. You play it, simply for the sake of playing, because without it you are simply not living.
If you don’t know what your passion is, start where you find joy. Start following your curiosities. What do you do that uplifts your spirit? Whatever you are drawn to doing, you do for a reason. Explore that.
If you let your passion motivate you, the pursuit will become its own reward.
Don’t worry about the money. Don’t worry about the points. I know that there are bills to pay and mouths to feed and roofs to keep over heads, but if you’re not down to struggle for an extended period of time, then you don’t want it that bad.

Chapter 6

When you are consumed by your own passion, you are not focused on anyone else. That passion requires an insane level of self-confidence and a thick skin, because in order to succeed you have to believe in yourself more than the average person. And the average person is offended by that supreme confidence. You will piss people off. Accept that.
Pursuing your passion is the surest way to separate your true friends from the energy leeches—anyone who sucks the life out of you because they are too scared and self-loathing to go after their own dreams. But passion is also magnetic; it draws people together. The transfer of confidence that happens when you are around someone passionate is enlightenment.
Your successes will prove to one another what is possible.

Sometimes We Need Others to Boost Our Confidence

I talk a lot about self-belief and NEVER doubting yourself, but I have to confess that there was a window in which I doubted whether I should, or even could, rap. At the end of 2010, I still thought of myself as solely a producer. I didn’t believe in my voice, because I hadn’t used it yet. I was sure it sounded stupid. At the same time, I’d always been writing. I’d written poems in high school; I’d help with certain flows and melodies in the studio while other people were recording. After a while, I gained confidence in my abilities as a writer and I started to think I should probably just start rapping. Then, one night, I was playing one of my beats for my brother, Frank, and I asked him, “Do you think I should start rapping?” “Yeah, why not? I think you could do it.” He was very supportive. That conversation, along with my early thoughts of “I could do this,” gave me the initial boost to start writing songs.I was down in Bugus’s basement getting ready to record a hook on one of his songs.
While standing at the mic I suddenly stopped and let go of the wheel. Someone else had taken over. That someone was the elevated version of myself who was tired of being ignored. *Who’s that ELEVATED VERSION OF YOURSELF YOUR IGNORING?
I turned around and asked Bugus, “Yo, should I start rapping?” Without hesitation he said, “Hell yeah! Do that shit!” That was all I needed. I haven’t looked back since.
Do you remember those first months after you got your license? Fun and freedom and wanting to always be driving? Endless possibilities? That’s what it was like after I started making my own songs; it was invigorating and liberating. It was so new and I didn’t want to do anything but that. The obsession had taken hold. When somebody is confident and passionate, their enthusiasm is contagious.
The energy of the people you surround yourself with rubs off on you; choose wisely.
Fear is the wall. Belief is what catapults you over the wall.

Chapter 7 YOU DON’T GET DROPPED OFF AT THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN.

Dreams only work if you do.
There’s someone right now who wants what you want and is working harder than you. Work harder than everyone else.
Don’t fool yourself into believing you’re not good enough, or that you are less talented than the next person. Get out of your way. I remember watching Kevin Durant get drafted into the NBA. He said: “Hard work beats talent when talent fails to work hard.”
A lot of people think that talent is the essential ingredient to success. They’re wrong. The X-factor is hard work. No one sees the hours Kobe spent in the gym or watching film on his opponents. They just see the final product—him scoring fifty over and over again. The reality is that the public will praise you for what you practice in private.
The reality is, if you love it, it won’t feel like work. When you pursue your passion, the work you do will be a source of joy and fulfillment. The more you work, the more fulfilled; the more fulfilled, the better the work.
Then I tried making my own beat. The first one was so, SO bad. I uploaded it to my YouTube channel one night and Frank asked, “What if you wake up tomorrow and have fifty thousand views?” (Fifty thousand was like fifty million—it was UNFATHOMABLE.) I went to bed recognizing how far-fetched that seemed, but at the same time I was jittery, and could hardly sleep at the thought that that was ABSOLUTELY possible. I woke up and it had fifty views. Yet I felt the opposite of discouraged. I felt invigorated and motivated to try again. It became a challenge for me to blow up, and I wasn’t going to stop until I did. It was in that moment that I realized that I DO have a work ethic; I just never had work that I loved.
All that was left was me and Bugus. We graduated high school and created DIEMON—Do It Everyday Music or Nothing—and that’s what we did; we made music every day. Together we formed a mastermind—when you and one other person come together and create a whole other force. 1 + 1 = 3. (In other interviews RUSS has mentioned reading Napoleon Hill who mentions a Mastermind as a crucial component of success)
What I learned was that this world doesn’t bet on talent. It bets on people who bet on themselves. The

Chapter 8

Embrace fear. It is natural to be hesitant when you’re standing at the edge of the cliff and you know that in order to live a fulfilled life you have to jump. You’re hesitant because you don’t have wings . . . yet.
Pulling the trigger is about trusting your instincts. Your gut knows what you want to do before you do. Train yourself to listen to your first thought, the uncensored one.
My parents were super supportive of me pursuing my music. When they agreed to let me come home, my mom made me sign this piece of paper that basically said, that if I wasn’t financially independent by such-and-such a date, then I’d have to go back to school or get a job. I signed the paper. At the time, that date, which was, like, a year away, seemed so far off in the distant future. I thought, Oh my god, by then I’m going to be an ultra-billionaire. That date came and went and I was still fucking nowhere. When I first uploaded my music on the digital music distribution platform, TuneCore, in 2011, on a good month I would make twenty dollars. Somehow I made it stretch. I would put five dollars in my gas tank. Bugus and I would throw in another five dollars each and get some disgusting alcohol. When we really wanted to treat ourselves, we would pool together another five dollars and get as many McDoubles as we could. Luckily, our moms were the MVPs, as most are. Mine being Italian, his being Nigerian, we never went hungry. That was my glamorous routine for five years.
At the time I didn’t think I was doing something brave. It was as if I was jumping off the cliff and it was so instinctual that I didn’t even realize I was jumping off the cliff. In fact, I didn’t see the cliff. I didn’t even know I was jumping. If I’d been so hell-bent on the idea that there was a cliff and that I was going to have to jump off of it, then I probably wouldn’t have jumped . . . I’m terrified of heights. IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD.
The minute you think about something for too long, fear creeps in. You begin to doubt yourself. That’s natural, however when you choose to be inspired by fear, you will actually end up flipping it into fuel and thriving off of it.
If you find yourself hesitating, don’t. The what if will torment you.
The oh, well will free you. Utilize that way of thinking continuously. The staircase of your dreams is daunting, because it is limitless and stretches far beyond what you can see. Stop focusing on the staircase and focus on the step in front of you.
Overcoming hesitation is an ongoing challenge that everyone faces. In moments of decision, don’t hesitate. Less think, more do. My intuition has driven my entire career—whether it’s quitting school or picking an album title or making business decisions.
If you approach offers and opportunities from a place of fear that they’re the only ones on the way, then you’ve put a limit on what you can receive. Instead, appreciate that you and your work are being recognized and sought after. Let that awareness boost your trust in yourself.
Don’t hesitate. Don’t doubt. Don’t even worry about falling. Wings will grow. Jump.

Chapter 9

Vulnerability is a magnet

My mom always tells me, “Keep your barriers down at all times.” It is her way of reminding me to be open to receiving. It is a mantra that runs through my head all the time. What I’ve discovered is that keeping my barriers down doesn’t just make me more receptive to inspiration, ideas, and success; it also allows me to be more vulnerable in my music and in my life. My mom gave me permission to be vulnerable.
What most people don’t realize is that when you are honest about your vulnerabilities and when you wear them like a proud badge, then you block others from weaponizing your vulnerabilities against you. If you are upfront about your failings, your fears, your weaknesses, it is much harder to have them used against you. It is like Eminem’s final battle in 8 Mile, when he rapped about all the things the other guy was gonna make fun of him about so that when it was that guy’s turn to go, he didn’t have anything to say and he forfeited. Being honest with yourself and with others is the best way to disarm people.
My songs are three minute autobiographies. That practice has taught me to freely bare my soul to the world. Instead of putting your best foot forward, put all your feet forward. This is it: take it or leave it.
The crowd favorite narrative is to not give a fuck about . . . anything. I give the most fucks. I care so much about my music and my life and my goals and that’s part of why it has worked.
People always downplay how badly they want something so that if they end up not getting it they don’t look stupid.
There are times throughout your journey when you have to check yourself and remind yourself of who you are. This was one of those moments.
If you are terrified of being critiqued, I suggest you do nothing and be nothing. That is the one way to avoid criticism, although you still won’t be able to escape your own . . . and that’s the only one that matters anyway. If you are living for the approval of others, you will always have a void. Fill the void with self-approval, which will blossom into self-love.
People will try to tell you how to be you. Don’t give a fuck what anyone else says about you. Give more fucks about what you say about you. Yell out what you want and be honest about how badly you want it. Wear your heart on your sleeve . . . actually fuck the sleeves. Get naked.

Chapter 10

***Before I blew up, I was sitting in my little corner of the world. Nobody knew who I was. But I knew who they were. I was studying them every day and night while surveilling the music ecosystem so that I understood every minute detail.

When Bugus and I started making music, we covered the entire wall of his basement with magazine cutouts of rappers and various music-industry icons. It was a stakeout. If you went down there you would’ve thought we were solving a murder, or plotting one. It was our war room. We studied everything and everyone at play from interviews to show footage to underground songs and moments that the rest of the world was oblivious to. I consciously soaked up so much, and I subconsciously soaked up even more. Bugus and I studied the fan, the player, the coach, and the owners.
We knew every artist’s discography inside and out. We knew which songs and albums fans responded to the most. We knew who actually owned the songs and albums. We knew who set up the tours for those songs and albums. You can’t expect to succeed if you don’t know what worked and what didn’t work for people before you.
- *The best in their craft study the greats.
Back when I was nineteen, I thought everything Bugus and I were doing was going to blow up tomorrow. When it didn’t, I had to learn that I could control my work and my self-belief, but not the timing. Patience was essential.
I put out my first project in 2011, but it wasn’t until the top of 2016 when things really started to take off. In that window of time I released eleven projects and more than eighty songs. I thought my first project should instantly make me the biggest artist in the world, and when it didn’t I was appalled: How did it not blow up? What the fuck? (When my music finally did take off years after that, I was thankful that it hadn’t happened when I thought I wanted it to. Mentally I wasn’t ready.)
Patience isn’t just the process of waiting. It is your attitude and how you handle the waiting time.
Until my music took off, it was just trial and error. I fell on my face a bunch of times. I’d think something was going to blow up and then it wouldn’t. When that happens ten times it would literally be insane to not think, Alright, it might be something I’m doing. It was on project eight or nine that I really started to feel like I’d found myself sonically. Still, nothing had worked. When nothing works keep working.
I never lost an ounce of enthusiasm. I lost track of time. That’s where I found success. Have tunnel vision on a goal and keep your head down. Don’t distract yourself and disrupt your momentum with the constant need to look up and look around. You have to master the balance of awareness and focus. You’ll know when to look up.
When I put out projects nine, ten, and eleven, I knew that they were great, and I couldn’t understand why they weren’t working. So I came up with a new strategy of putting out a song a week. I had studied that when dropping an album, more times than not, the song with the most amount of plays was the first one on the album. I reflected on my career up until that point and realized that the music was not the issue, the delivery of it was. I had an epiphany that I should essentially drop one-song albums. Every song would get its own promotion, its own artwork, and its own fair chance at being heard.

“I BEEN CALCULATIN’, LIVIN’ IN THIS HOUSE OF PATIENCE

QUARANTINED MYSELF DOWN HERE, BUT NOW I’M BREAKIN’ OUT THE BASEMENT”

I went away for a couple of months and just made a bunch of songs. I wanted twenty-six songs in the vault because I knew that being half a year ahead would provide me with more than enough cushion to create without conflict. I also made my whole next album, because I KNEW I was going to blow up and I didn’t want to have to scramble and make an album on the fly once it happened. Chess, not checkers. I knew what my next move was going to be, and I had a plan for how to play the entire game. Once I had half a year mapped out, then I put out song one. I wanted to always be six months ahead so that when everything took off and I couldn’t get into the studio as often, I’d still have music to release.
I spent that time painting a perfect sonic portrait of myself.
At that point the whole world was telling me it’s not going to work. I had journalists telling me it’s not going to work. My own career results were telling me it was not going to work. I had put out eleven fucking projects and nothing had taken off. The takeaway from all of this though was that I was now highly versed in what didn’t work. I studied my failures and strategized my triumphs. The delusion at the beginning of my career was now backed by research. Let me try one more thing—the song a week until I blow up. It worked. My TuneCore earnings crept up and then they skyrocketed. In June 2015 I made $620, and in June 2016 I made $102,000.
Keep going consistently and positively, and if it doesn’t work out, then pivot, switch your approach, and keep going. Never stop studying.

Chapter 11 YOUR LIFE IS ON THE LINE. YOU SHOULD BE THE ONE TAKING THE SHOT.

Self-sufficiency is a powerful freedom, one you grant to yourself. Try everything. Throw away the manual. Give yourself the education on how to survive in the wild.
Knowing that you are enough is invigorating. When you succeed on your terms and only your terms with no one else’s fingerprints on your work you become a superhero.
There is nothing you can’t do at that point. Captain your own ship. How are you going to build a ship, let someone else steer it, and then be surprised when it doesn’t go in the direction that you had in mind? Or worse: Why would you abandon your own ship in the first place? Artists often sign deals that do exactly that, deals that have them ceding control of their creation. Stay in the cockpit.
Educate yourself. You have to be hands-on with your dream if you want it to go your way.
The business side should support the creativity, not control it, and certainly not interfere with it. No matter what you do, the deeper your understanding of the full scope of your career—from creative to sales to the mechanics—the better equipped you will be to survive in the wild.
I have always questioned authority. I questioned teachers. I questioned principals and the principles. I questioned managers. I questioned bosses. Having a boss was never for me.The idea of someone else ever having the power to tell me what to do, let alone contractually, wasn’t for me. I didn’t have to know the ins and outs of the business to know that I didn’t want a boss. I didn’t want to give up control of the what, how, when, and why I was making what I was making.
For me, the first step in self-sufficiency was owning the means of operation. I wanted uninhibited freedom to self-explore sonically. That type of self-exploration requires a forum that doesn’t have curfews and random passersby. From the extremely bootlegged studio in my parents’ basement to the upgraded studio in Bugus’s parents’ basement, we always intuitively knew that we needed to own the gym we were practicing in. The lights were always on.
Self-reliance is purely a survival technique. I didn’t have a choice. What I learned was that by doing it myself I got the sound I wanted. It’s that simple; I was working on several careers at once. I was trying to perfect making beats. I was trying to perfect being a writer. I was trying to perfect being a rapper and singer. I was trying to learn how to perform, engineer, mix, and master. Trial and error was the best teacher I ever had. Self-sufficiency was why I was able to make so much music—because I didn’t have to call anyone. I could go downstairs and make a whole album and not have to pick up the phone once. That was freedom. Freedom is power.
I need to be productive. I’m impulsive. I need to be able to create at any moment. I don’t have time to ask someone else to facilitate my creativity. Get out of the chair and I’ll do it! I was controlling my own workload, controlling my own growth, and therefore controlling my own trajectory.
Don’t fall asleep on yourself. YOU are the answer.

Chapter 12 BUILD YOUR OWN REALITY.

Society sets you on a path toward a “dependable,” predictable life-in-a-box. The path to college. The road to success. The way to happiness. A lot of people will tell you that what you want to achieve can’t be done. Never internalize their limits as your own. Don’t fall for it. There is no one-size-fits-all path. To figure out what you want and how to get it, you must follow your own path. To certain onlookers you might appear lost. You are not lost. You are exploring.
Society wants your life itemized in boxes that they can put labels on. They want you to behave a certain way. They want you to follow a certain career path. They want you to date a certain person. You must recognize this and reject it. Life truly starts on the outside of the walls. Don’t fall for the idea that you need a relationship to be happy. Don’t fall for the idea that you need to be realistic or humble or practical. Don’t fall for your own doubt and don’t fall into the trap of comparison. Your mirror should only show one reflection.
When you lose yourself in something you are passionate about, you will find yourself there too. But in order to lose yourself, let alone find yourself, you will need uninterrupted time by yourself. You must work in the dark for your light to shine.
Being alone is imperative. It’s when you’re going to self-explore. If you are constantly seeking company then you need to take a step back and reassess. You are scared to face yourself. Embrace this fear and take it on as a challenge. Take it day by day. This is a race, yes, but not against anyone or anything else except your own doubt.
A lot of people get alone and think, I’m lonely. So many people define and limit their lives to wanting a relationship above all else. So, instead of choosing a person out of love, they choose a relationship out of fear of being alone. They are trying to fall in love with someone else before they fall in love with themselves. This will never work; you will always have a void that only you can fill. You will find the person you are supposed to find when you are living your true purpose—in fact, you will both actually collide into each other. Don’t set relationship goals. Set life goals. If people worked toward their dreams with the same zeal that they worked toward getting into a relationship they would be successful. I’m not saying stop putting love first. I’m saying stop misplacing love. Start by putting that love into yourself. Fall in love with a dream of yours. This type of self-love only grows in the garden of solitude.
“Be realistic” is the worst advice I’ve ever received. It is a commonly used phrase that, when internalized and accepted, brands a life of mediocrity. The people championing realism are usually the people who gave up on their own dreams. The reason someone will tell you something is unrealistic is because you haven’t done it yet, and deeper than that, THEY themselves haven’t done it yet. Being realistic is claustrophobic. It suffocates you and limits you to only what’s been done so far. Will Smith explained in an interview: “It is unrealistic to walk into a room and flip a switch and lights come on. Fortunately, Edison didn’t think so. It is unrealistic to think that you can bend a piece of metal and fly people over an ocean. That’s unrealistic.”
I hate the word humble with a vengeance. The dictionary definition is disappointing to say the least given how idolized the character trait is. The word humble has been defined as to be marked by modesty or meekness with regard to spirit or attitude or behavior, or as showing submissive respect, being low in rank or quality. All of these things are about lowering yourself to appease others. I understand what people are trying to say; they’re trying to tell you to stay grounded. But you can be grounded without being weak in behavior or low in rank, and you should not pretend that you are a part of some strange show for other people where whoever has the most curtailed confidence wins. Being humble is living according to other people. Because even that humble person thinks they’re the greatest thing in the world. But in order to come off humble, in order to not offend insecure people, they will silence their roar. Society doesn’t feel comfortable unless you are wearing a muzzle. No one who is winning has a problem with someone else winning. Being humble is a strange societal rule that has been drawn up to keep your own confidence in check and keep your self-belief in their pocket. They want to decide when you can have your own confidence. Humility makes you your own worst enemy.
Why spend time trying to dim your own light out of fear that it could get in someone else’s eyes? If their light was shining, they wouldn’t even see yours.

Chapter 13 LIVE IN A STATE OF URGENCY.

When I was a kid my mom always said, “Move with a purpose.” If I was upstairs and she called my name, she’d be furious if I said, “What?” “If I’m calling you it means move with a purpose,” she’d tell me sternly. That is ingrained in my head. Move with a purpose. Move with urgency. Move like you’re trying to make it happen by tonight, like there is someone else out there in their basement working super hard who is going to take it away from you if you don’t do it first.
People are too noncommittal to their dreams. “I’ll get to it,” they say. They’re always putting things off. When I ask people about their goals, their end game, I often hear, “Well, for right now I’m doing this, but later on . . .” Stop waiting. There is no later on. Nothing is going to change between now and then unless you do. Putting something off until later is a sure-fire way to never do it.
People use the future as an excuse to procrastinate. Treat your life like it’s a ticking time bomb . . . because it is. Time is our most prized possession. Some people don’t understand the value of a dollar, but far worse than that is that even more people don’t understand the value of a minute.
My dad used to hold us kids accountable in that regard, whether it was homework, chores, or prepping for the game. We would often say, “Yea, don’t worry. I’ll do it later.” He would instantly retort with, “I’ll do it when?!“ and then he’d answer himself, ”I’ll do it NOW.“
It took me forty-five minutes to make “What They Want,” a now RIAA Double-Platinum certified song (might be Triple-Platinum by the time this book comes out). This was also one of the first songs that catapulted my career. It changed my life. I understand the value of a minute, let alone forty-five. When you understand that time is the one thing you can’t get back, you will spend it wisely. A lot of people, however, are just going through the motions and don’t even notice the time passing.
There is always something to be done. As long as you are accomplishing one small facet of the bigger picture every day then you are spending your time wisely. Don’t worry about being perfect. Be more concerned with being productive. Think less. Do more.
Overthinking can paralyze your progress. Get out of your way. I’ve said a lot about the power of thought, of putting what you want into the universe and believing in yourself, and filling your head with the ideas that can propel you forward. But in the end, all of those thoughts are useless if it isn’t compounded into action. You can think you are the greatest, but if you don’t do anything, no one will ever know. Keep doing. Keep making. Keep pushing. It’s about output. Do it so you can do it again. Get in as many reps as possible. Repetition is the father of perfection.
You have to simultaneously believe that what you are doing is good and have the foresight to understand that even if it is not as good as you want, it will become great through practice. You have to be okay with not being great for a year or ten. Even when you’ve reached your first goal, when your belief has finally been recognized and manifested in the universe, your work will not be perfect.
Perfection lives on the horizon; it is elusive. You will keep leveling up and keep chasing perfection. You will continuously strive to be the best version of yourself—there is always more to do.

Chapter 14 I CREATED THE STORM. I KNEW IT WAS COMING.

You have listened as the wind uprooted trees and knocked debris against the house—but still, after the storm, you emerge from the basement and stare at the aftermath in awe. You are blown away that it actually happened, even though you’d not only expected it to happen but prepared for it. You knew that your dreams were going to manifest. You weren’t surprised that the storm actually hit, but that doesn’t take away from the magnitude of the aftermath. That’s what it is like when your success finally hits. Even though you have manifested your success and spent years believing it was inevitable, the reality of it can still inspire awe.
It is essential to recognize your achievements and to feel gratitude for your wins, large and small. Gratitude is your way of telling the universe, “Thank you, I’ll have some more.” If you’re not grateful for the blessings you currently have, what makes you think you’re going to receive more?
Celebrate what you want to see more of.

Chapter 15 THE FUTURE VERSION OF YOURSELF SHOULD BE YOUR INSPIRATION.

Get obsessed with the idea of a better you.
The idea that there is always an upgraded version of myself that can be attained is what keeps me going. I’m often asked about which artists inspire me. The answer is “the future me.” I’m aware that that sounds arrogant, and, of course, I listen to and am moved by and excited by a lot of great artists. But when it comes to inspiration, my biggest motivator is my own potential. When your number one driving factor is your potential, then your success starts and ends with you. It is all in your head.
Your potential has no roof. Stop giving it ceilings.
My mom is a certified life coach. She’s super intuitive and very spiritual. One of my favorite things she always says is, “What if it can turn out better than you can imagine?”
Don’t stop yourself from becoming a 99 just because you think you’re only a 60.

“I KNOW WHAT YOU COULD BE

I KNOW WHAT YOU SHOULD BE

I JUST HOPE YOU WAKE UP”

Chapter 16 THE DREAM IS LIVING IT.

Too many people are waiting to arrive at success. They are suspending their happiness and fulfillment until they arrive at a destination that doesn’t exist. The journey is the success. Trust the process. As long as you stay on your path and know where you’re headed, you have to accept that any obstacle along the way is exactly where it is supposed to be. Let the world go and watch it all come to you, or fight it till the end and watch what it does to you. You choose.
Blind faith is your compass.
When I was fifteen my dad told me, “You don’t know how to be content. You’ll get twenty Grammys and be pissed that you didn’t get twenty-one.” He’s right. I’m terrified of being content. I could go make my favorite song I’ve ever made tonight, and I will absolutely be satisfied and in love with it, but by the time the song is finished, I am already hooked on the idea of making a better one. Each “favorite” song I make doesn’t make me stop. I don’t think to myself, “Okay, that’s it, I did it. I can retire.” They are simply celebrations of the never-ending journey.
The thrill of the journey is embracing newness as long as it is in sync with your purpose.

Chapter 17 YOU WILL FAIL

The reality is that this isn’t easy. It is not supposed to be. A certain amount of struggle is necessary in order to appreciate success. They will try to break you. But, God forbid it happens, breakdowns create breakthroughs.
Life is one big fucking contradiction. I’m sitting here telling you that it’s all in your head, and yet I was losing to the thoughts in my head. However, in the middle of adversity is where you discover who you truly are. I could control my thoughts, what I put out into the world, and my behavior. I decided to trust that whatever happens is actually what is supposed to happen. I realized that this was all just part of my journey and that it was going to contribute to making everything that much better in the long run. Besides, I don’t want some smooth-sailing career.
Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors.
When you are down and you rise up, you feel more powerful than you ever did. On the other side of adversity is strength.

Chapter 18 THE JOURNEY STARTS AND ENDS WITH YOU

Keep the faith.