ass power

Being inspired is not enough. Quincy Jones told me this one time actually. I asked him, "Quincy, so you work with all these great singers - blah, blah, blah, - blah, blah, blah… how come Michael Jackson is so successful? What separated him from other people you work with?" 

He said, "Ass power."

He said Michael had the ability to come in the studio and he would sing the lead vocal and then he would do the background vocals. Then he would stack the harmonies on the background vocals so that the record had like three or four levels to it. That's what he would leave. Most singers, if you could get the lead vocal out of them --- IF you could get the lead vocal out of them,  and they'd stay -- and they didn't want to go to the dope man, or get high, or go to party  - that was something. Michael had that ability to focus on his work and take whatever he had to the highest level that he could take it and that's why he [Quincy Jones] always felt that Michael's records were more creative and very, very detailed. If you listen to Michael's records now it's like a lot of little things, I mean it's really ear candy - your earphones are full. 

Ass power - I always believed in that and that's been a big thing for me, ass power.

People say, "So Nelson, you have written all of these books, how did you do that?" I sit my ass down and I get it done. It's not about me being fly, it's not about me being whatever - you know. Even when I go out - I've met people, I've hung out in all  the clubs... but you know what - there's still like an hour left until two o'clock, I usually leave by two o'clock because I can still get work done until 3 and go to sleep, then get up and have a day. Once you stay past 3 o'clock there's no morning for you. You're through - it's one o'clock, it's breakfast. I knew that even when I was young. That's why I was able to get a lot of stuff done even though I hung out and would go to all these things. I always had a very clear sense of when I needed to go back and get what I needed to get done. Ass power is big.

- Nelson George