Kendrick Lamar wasn't nervous when he first met with Dr Dre.
The rappers worked together on Kendrick's 2012 album 'Good Kid, Maad City', with Dre appearing on the track 'Compton', but Kendrick didn't feel anxious before he came face-to-face with the music mogul.
Kendrick told i-d.vice.com: "I was very excited. I wasn't nervous at all. I was more excited, 'cause I knew that this was my shot, everything that l've worked for, everything I've built up to came down to that moment."
The 26-year-old rapper, who was nominated for a Grammy Award last month, has also been inspired by Dre's work outside of music, after he launched his own headphones line and Beats Music streaming service.
Kendrick said: "I [still] talk to him. At the moment he's just working on Beats by Dre. Doing a lot of promo and press for that, getting buried in life right now.
"You know when you conquer one thing, you want to move on to the next and be able to challenge yourself? He inspired me to want to do that, once I get the years behind me, of being exceptionally great at music."
And he thinks his songs prove he has more than just creative talent, adding: "My lyrics say that I have confidence, say I have weaknesses, say I have strong points, say I am a human being."
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