Nas was a recent guest on CNN to talk about his new single “Daughters” and some of the challenges he’s faced raising a teenage girl.

Speaking with Soledad O’Brien and Roland Martin, the 38-yr old iconic rapper said, “Because of the relationship I had with my daughter’s mother and being in this business, it kinda took me away from her and took me away from being that parent that was there all the time… I did my best, but it wasn’t good enough for me. So that’s why I did this record.”

On the use of the N-Word in his music: “It’s street corner language. As I get older, the need for me to use it in my music is not so much as it used to be. But it’s like young language, young street corner music that winds up on the radio. And it speaks to a lot of young people in their language… yeah gotta be authentic.”