[Yesspaz]

Another bit of the interview I found interesting, for what it's worth:

Jon: I believe in great music.

SoT: Of course—you're an artist.

Jon: I love Mahavishnu, Weather Report. I love some new songs now and again. I enjoyed Nirvana and bands like that. I've seen U2 and Bruce Springsteen. They're great! There's great music out there, but don't hit me over the head and say, "you've got to have a hit record." Of course I'd love to have a hit record. I mean, my voice is on a #1 album right now.

SoT: The new Kayne West, right?

Jon: Yeah. It makes me feel like "hey, I wrote a rock opera twenty years ago and I've got to get Kanye West to sing on it. Or rap on it." He's got a great producer.

SoT: A lot of hip-hop artists these days sample music you wouldn't expect them to even know about, I think. I remember hearing from someone that Kayne West sampled King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man." How unexpected do you think that is for these artists to go back decades and sample progressive rock and relate genres?

Jon: I think some of their producers have their heads screwed on because it reaches so many different people. They've woken up and realized that there are different kinds of music; it doesn't have to all be about sex, drugs, rock 'n' roll, and bling-bling.