Talib Kweli says: “Passion is a natural resource and I will die without it”

Finding passion is about being honest with yourself, it’s not about the world it’s about you. Talib Kweli is world’s most in-demand Rap Artist, he has over 15 million views on YouTube, a million followers on Facebook and a million followers on Twitter, more importantly he is a Social Activist!Rising up from Brooklyn to such success in the Rap and Hip Hop music industry is a great achievement that took lots of being passionate yet practical, and when I asked Talib where he gets that passion from he responded, “Passion is a natural resource and it I will die without it. You are not doing yourself nor anyone a favor if you do not use your passion.”His point of view on how to find passion is that passion is not about the world, passion is about you, passion is about being honest with yourself. Only then you related to the audience, not when you are trying to do, if you “try” then you would sound corny!This interview is full of practical passion wisdom that will give you an “Aha” moment so share it and spread the love.Live PassionatelyMoustafa HamwiMoustafa: Hello everyone, and welcome back to Passion Sundays, the best way to end a week and start another. Our guest today is one of the world’s top hip hop / Rap artists. 20 years in the industry, 15 million views on YouTube, a million followers on Facebook and a million followers on Twitter.Talib Kweli, the man himself. Thank you very much for having us here.Talib: How are you?Moustafa: Thank You. So, simply said Passion.Talib: It’s everything. It’s the driving force behind everything.Moustafa: And everybody says passion, passion, passion. But how easy is it to actually find our passion.Talib: I think it’s a matter of being honest with yourself and understanding that you solely are responsible for your life and your lifestyle and when you do that, you understand that the easiest way to make a living or make a life is to go to a job and do something daily that you are passionate about, anything else is madness.Moustafa: Awesome! But you say it’s so easy as if you woke up and found the silver spoon in your mouth, which we know is not the truth. You have to work your way to where you are today. You have been doing this for 20 yearsTalib: Hmmm…Moustafa: How hard is it to actually find that passion, when things are going low?Talib: One thing is important for me to remember that, I do music because of my passion. I didn’t start doing music, because I thought I would be in Dubai talking to you. Or, because some fans like the way I flowed. It was allinner. And all comes from me. So, if I stay focused on the original reason why I make music, that keeps me going, even when things seem like they are not as good.Moustafa: So, why do you make music?Talib: Hmm, it’s a natural resource. I would, I would die without it. It’s the way that I express myself and I have been given this gift from God and I feel like I would not be doing the world a service , if I didn’t use the gift that I was given.Moustafa: Awesome! So, in a way, what you are saying actually you find your passion by being of service to the world.Talib: Well, I find it by being, first and foremost, honest with myself. Because with art, I think it’s not about service the world, it becomes about that when you are selling it, when you are putting a bar code on it and you have to sell it to people. When you are in the studio, whether you are painting or creating music, it can’t be about the world, it has to be about yourself.Moustafa: OkayTalib: The best art in the world, people relate to it, not because someone is pandering to the audience or trying to do something for the world and matter of fact that those songs are corny. When your song is someone trying to have a message, that comes across as insincere. Or, when people talk honestly from the heart, that’s what people truly relate to. So, as an artist, your job is to get as close to your truer self as possible and that’s the way you relate to the world.Moustafa: But, what if you are in a situation, you are in a job you don’t like, you find yourself stuck there and you don’t know what to do. How do you then find passion, how do you then pursue passion? Not everybody can quit a job, not everybody has pursued their passion early on, so they wake up half way through their life and go- what I am doing with my life?Talib: Well, the best thing about life is that you always have another day. And the best thing about passion is that, you can absolutely have a passion be a hobby. So, even if you have to wake up in the morning and do things for survival, you can get joy out of doing your passion on your free time.Moustafa: Awesome! I love that. So, tell us more about the Javotti Media? What is it about? I know that it has to do with thinkers, and doers, and passionate people. And this is what get us excited about talking to you today.Talib: Javotti is a label, it’s named after my grandmother, it’s a label, but it’s bigger than that. I say a label, first and foremost, because I’m most knowledgeable about the music business, but we also sell books, moving into artwork and I’m just trying to create a space and a hub for independent artists.Moustafa: That’s awesome! I love that. Well, this has been amazing. Thank you very much, and it’s always good to see a different point of view on passion. And I love how your point of view is about passion, is first and foremost, for yourself and when you’re there, you can co-create also.Talib: YeahMoustafa: We’ve gotta let you go. Because I know, that there are great tunes now to share with the world.Talib: ya lets have some fun.Moustafa: So, thank you very much, this is been awesome moment.Talib: Thank youMoustafa & Talib: Passion!What do you think? I would really love to hear your opinion. If you would like to stay engaged, subscribe to our social media channels and if you want even more valuable interviews and tips and tricks on how to live passionately, then go to moustafahamwi.com and subscribe to our Passion Sundays newsletter.Until the next episode, live passionately!