It’s no secret that Immortal Technique is well read. Among the many texts the revolutionary has absorbed, none have had more of an impact on him than The Autobiography of Malcolm X. While not the first rapper to cite this 1965 classic as an inspiration, Tech feels that he shares a unique connection with the life of Malcolm X, the ex-con-turned-minister and people’s champ.

“[The book is] a story of struggle and transformation of someone who’s living a criminal life and says, ‘You know what? I wanna turn this around. I wanna change myself and become something much greater–not just for myself, but for my people, because I see a potential in them that they may not see in themselves.’”

“I always related to that directly ’cause I was like, ‘I live my life a criminal. I’m sitting here locked up–this has gotta stop. I gotta do something. I gotta stop fighting the wrong causes and get the selfishness out of myself so that I can start getting some work done. If I have to do that aggressively, and there are obstacles in my way or people in my way that need to get crushed, well then that’s just what it is.’”