Looking at your current situation, how would you define success?
The thing is, I make music because I love making music. In all honesty, I really like to hear my voice. I got a pretty cool voice. When I hear it over the tracks, I'll be like, "Oh, it sounded pretty cool there." The girls will be like, "Oh, damn. It sounded pretty cool." The ladies love me and the players respect me and the regular 9-to-5 guys, they respect me as well because I tell a story so compelling that they can relate to it.
A lot of people remember you first from "Spaceship." What life events from these past five years have shaped the content of your upcoming album?
Well, my nephew got locked up. A couple of friends went to the joint. I moved around. I traveled across the world. I've been on a world tour. I got a lot of stamps on my passport. Garnered the respect from some of the people that do this for real. For the last five years, people have been following me on the internet and they've been able to see me grow and develop and expand. Man, it's just been a blessing. I've gotten a lot wiser so I'm not coming into the gang blind like so many artists do. I've been on the internet and on the streets doing my own thing and creating my own buzz. People have been accepting. My attitude is gratitude to the fans because at the end of the day, everybody has an option. You can choose to have GLC and ride with me and the movement or you can denounce it. People from all walks of life have been embracing GLC. It's a blessing. I remember going over to Europe and doing tours, just last year actually. Man, you come out on stage, people go nuts like they've seen the Beatles. It's mind-blowing.
In your travels abroad, what has been the wildest experience for you?
I visited Montreal for the first time in 2003, when I opened up for Kanye. After I got done with my set, I was signing autographs and a girl pulled her shirt up and showed off her chest, so I signed it. [laughing] Another time – I believe I was in Stockholm, Sweden – and I went inside of a burger chain when a young man shouted "GLC! GLC!" He said, "Welcome to Burger King." He was just really excited, man. He didn't know what to do. It's just mind-blowing. Everyday something wild happens. It's all beginning to sink in. People are really becoming more aware of GLC and my brand and what I do. The world is beginning to see the concept. You know what I'm saying? I've been a star. At the end of the day, people will see the sun but in reality, the sun ain't nothing but a star. It just had more exposure so people can see it and say, "Oh, s**t. The sun is shining as bright as hell." What about the other stars that you haven't had a close-up on yet? You know what I'm saying? I'm one of those.
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