Vince Staples: 'I Don't Really Like to Listen to Music'

Vince Staples remains one of the most interesting figures in rap music, but he apparently doesn't keep up with a lot of it. His new interview with GQ is full of some typically intriguing responses, discussing everything from interacting with fans to performing onstage. Perhaps most curiously, though, he admitted during the interview that he doesn't keep up with music like many of his peers.

When asked what he's currently listening to, he said that he doesn't really "like to listen to music." Pressed to explain himself further, he continued, "I listen to music when people I like put an album out. I'll listen to it. But I don't really listen to music. I never really read. I've never read a book outside of school. Not that there's anything wrong with reading, it's just not my entertainment preference."

While on his current tour, Staples also revealed that he's been meeting with some of his fans between shows. "It's awkward," he explained. "I understand why it's awkward, but it is awkward. They make it akward because they like you and appreciate you so much, so it's hard to have a regular conversation." Staples has been very open that he's never entirely been comfortable with the state of his own celebrity.

"And then somebody tells you how you could have kept them from killing themselves or help them get through something—it's a very weighted experience, you know what I mean? Very nuanced, just as people are," he continued. "We might look at ourselves like we're just normal people at the end of the day, but we're not that to the rest of the world. And it's a very telling thing when you do these meet and greets because they look at you like you're, for lack of a better word, they treat you like God or some shit. It's very weird."

Meanwhile, on his Twitter, Staples has been having a lot of fun with his fans. Never one to shy away from the important questions, he asked his Twitter followers, "Which one y'all think Jesus look more like Nav or Belly?" When some people responded by saying J. Cole, he added, "I see a lot of you saying he would've looked like Cole but I don't really think it was many biracials around back then. [...] Y'all laughing but I'm serious stay focused. I always envisioned jesus looking like Aziz Ansari."