In any industry, you’re bound to get burnt out. Once you’re deep into your work, you become a little bit cynical about how the systems work. Then, you slowly start to lose your passion, and it becomes just grunt work mentally.

It’s a struggle but a worthwhile fight to keep the fire for what you love alive. Yasiin Bey knew firsthand what it was like and essentially vanished from the music industry at the peak of his powers.

In a 2025 interview with The Guardian, the rapper formerly known as Mos Def recalled his career in the late 90s and early 2000s. His debut album, Black on Both Sides, was thriving critically and commercially. He was performing in great films like Bamboozled, Brown Sugar, and The Italian Job.

READ ON AT VICE