50 Dope Quotes For Lovers Of All Things Awesome

By Clifton Sankofa

School Leader, Language Arts Expert & Master Quote Curator

Published March 2, 2023

Take a moment to check out our fantastic collection of dope quotes.

You have probably heard people describing things as being ‘dope.’

Or maybe you have heard someone call someone else a dope.

If you are a sports fan, you most likely have heard reporters mentioning athletes that have been doping.

The word dope is very popular; let’s go on a deep dive into dope and learn more.

What is dope in American slang?

Like many popular culture references, the modern use of the word dope has its roots in hip-hop culture.

However, before we get into how African Americans and rappers have influenced the American lexicon for generations, we have to back even further than the birth of hip-hop culture.

First, let’s check out these astonishing facts about dope:

A foolish person can be a dope.
Dope can refer to drugs, particularly cannabis.
The word dope can mean unique or awesome.

Etymologists are people who study the origins of words.

In the United States, the word dope has its roots in the seventeen century.

The first Dutch settlers arrived in the United States as early as 1614.

New Netherlands was established in what is now New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut, and Delaware.

Immigrants bring their culture and food with them.

Doop is a gravy or sauce that Dutch immigrants put on their food.

Over time, the word doop evolved into dope and referred to any syrupy or thick substance.

Dope gained popularity and became place holder word to describe all thick liquid substances, from foods, medicines, and drugs.

The rise of dope and drug use

Opium is one of the oldest drugs on planet earth.

There are records of opium use by Sumerian peoples dating back to 3400 BC.

Opium comes from the poppy plant, and many scholars believe opium use goes back even further than Sumerian culture.

Opium is a depressant drug that gained popularity in American cities in the nineteenth century.

Opium poppy pods hold a milky substance called latex that is made up of codeine and morphine.

With the rise of opium use, this sticky, viscous substance became known as dope.

People who were addicted to opium were called “dopes.”

Addicts who were poisoned or overdosed on opium were “doping.”

Doping racehorses: An American tradition

People using dope gained popularity in the US as opium use increased.

Eventually, people started putting drugs into racehorses.

Horserace betting is an American pastime.

Gamblers have been giving horses “dope” to speed them up or down depending on how they wanted the race to turn out.

The culture of doping racehorses is where we get phrases such as “straight dope” and “inside dope,” referring to the inside information gamblers sought about which horse was doped for the race.

How do you use the word dope?

The word dope has an extensive history and has changed meanings several times.

For more awesome content, check out our dope quotes below.

Short dope quotes about being awesome

People have used the slang term dope to describe things they admire, desire, or appreciate for a long time. These short, dope quotes celebrate that idea.

1. “Solange is just dope. I’m a huge fan.” — Amine

2. “Australian people are dope. They’re so fun.” — Erin Heatherton

3. “I’m pretty sure people thought I was like a dope rapper.” — Big Pun

4. “I like Jeremy Scott, and he has some really dope sneakers.” — Theophilus London

5. “If you got a dope girl, there’s going to be people that want her.” — Lance Gross

6. “One night, I went over to get some dope from some Hollywood tough guy.” — James Caan

7. “Why is it you feel like a dope if you laugh alone, but that’s usually how you end up crying?” — Chuck Palahniuk

8. “I am fed up with a system which busts the pot smoker and lets the big dope racketeer go free.” — George McGovern

9. “If anyone wants to know what the definition of ‘dope’ means, it’s: ‘Definition of Public Enemy.’” — Flavor Flav

10. “I think it’s so dope that I’m here in Chicago and contributing to the music scene that’s thriving.” — Chance The Rapper

Dope quotes by hip-hop artists you can vibe with

The slang term dope originates in hip-hop culture. This collection includes hip-hop artists from different generations describing what they think is dope.

11. “I’m a very humble guy, but of course, I think I’m dope.” — DJ Premier

12. “Naahhh, I don’t like KRS no more ’cause he just think he’s too dope.” — The Notorious B.I.G.

13. “My dream tour would be like, me, Cole, Drake, Sean, Meek. I think that would be dope, something like that; big venues.” — Wale

14. “I started to realize, ‘Wow, I really sound like this dude. If I keep doing this, maybe I can sound dope like John Legend and still rap.’” — Tory Lanez

15. “But the main thing is if you can make good songs, who cares? So I don’t know why guys are tripping on Drake. He makes great music. He’s dope.” — Ty Dolla Sign

16. “My 9-year-old daughter can recite every line from ‘Easy Rider,’ and that is not an easy song to do. She raps all of Nicki Minaj and everything; she’s dope.” — Action Bronson

17. “That’s the dope thing about music now. Some people don’t like it, more of the older people. They want to, you know, go back to old-school New York hip-hop.” — ASAP Ferg

18. “I released a song called ‘Let Em Know’ off SoundCloud, and some fan commented on it and was like, ‘Trap soul movement,’ and I was like, ‘Man, that’s dope. What is that?’” — Bryson Tiller

19. “My homies in Gadsden aren’t as exposed as I am culturally, which is awesome – that’s why I love going home. I’m in the kitchen with people who don’t know anything but the simple life, what’s important to them, and what’s dope.” — Yelawolf

20. “I need to focus on hip-hop and focus on making the music so that when the activists come to me, and they need my voice to create a platform, then I’ve got enough people listening to me. Not because I’m conscious, but because I’m dope.” — Talib Kweli

Thought-provoking dope quotes about life

There is a difference between being a dope and being dope. A dope is someone foolish; being dope means being remarkable. These quotes honor all the different ways we like to use the term dope.

21. “Before I started writing for myself, I was writing country records, and they were coming out dope.” — Trevor Jackson

22. “One thing that was really dope for me was that my dad had a ’78 Corvette, ’78 or ’76 Corvette, all my life.” — Sevyn Streeter

23. “If you’re a dope like me, you get every sports channel you can get. I’m watching, you know, Netherlands soccer.” — Michael Keaton

24. “I wanted to make a cohesive product, but I also just want to make a bunch of dope songs inspired by whatever sounds I liked.” — Chance The Rapper

25. “Upsetting the dope is a favorite pastime in baseball. Past performances count for but little in the national pastime. Reputations don’t get you anywhere.” — Billy Evans

26. “I think it speaks to people in 2015, right now. We address real situations. It’s real life! Everything that happens in ‘Dope’ could happen today.” — Shameik Moore

27. “Nothing against Nicki Minaj – I think she’s a dope lyricist, and her body is perfect, along with a dope personality. But I’m more into a woman who’s not so much into the spotlight.” — Jeremih

28. “That’s how it used to be in Harlem. I remember everybody Harlem-shaking and ‘Chicken Noodle Soup’-ing. Those were some of the most fun and memorable times in my life. ASAP Ferg ‘Illmatic’ was dope.” — ASAP Ferg

29. “I don’t think I’m an alarmist. I’m more disappointed by the euphemisms in some instances than outright bigotry. Now, to me, you walk around with a Klan hat on, or you’ve got a swastika on your arm, you just look like a dope, you know what I mean?” — John Ridley

30. “I’m a hip-hop guy, and the first time I heard Eminem was in ’96. He was on a record with Shabban Siddiq. I was like, ‘Who is this guy? He’s dope!’ First album came out: awesome. Second album came out: awesome. Third album, I was like, ‘Eh.’ He started to get really successful. He wasn’t ‘mine’ anymore.” — Russell Peters

Dope quotes about the movie ‘Dope’ and making dope art

Fans loved the movie ‘Dope,’ and artists enjoy making content that audiences find dope. This is a dope quote collection.

31. “Everything about the movie ‘Dope’ is real artistry, and everybody put their full hearts and souls into it.” — Shameik Moore

32. “I feel it’s important for the geeks to have a voice. ‘Dope’ is going to give a lot of people a new perspective.” — Shameik Moore

33. “The movies Dope’ and ‘Straight Outta Compton’ blew me away. I love seeing directors and writers of color make amazing slices of pop culture.” — Hasan Minhaj

34. “Before saying, ‘This track is so dope; it’s gonna go on the album,’ I like to take some time away from it and see how I feel about it in a few months.” — Flying Lotus

35. “My ideal night would probably be a dope outfit, people that I love around me. Go to get some dinner, have some amazing food. Maybe sushi or Italian: I love both.” — Bebe Rexha

36. “I already have two movies in the can, low-key, which are ‘Vincent-N-Roxxy’ and ‘Keanu’ with Key and Peele, which is my first comedy, and it’s going to be super dope, definitely funny.” — Jason Mitchell

37. “Whenever a dope artist comes out of nowhere, the first thing you do is try and compare it to stuff until you realize that that artist is just them, and eventually those comparisons will stop.” — Bryson Tiller

38. “To be honest, after you’ve crossed the line at the Olympic Games, it is bedlam for the next, about five or six hours. Media, press conference, dope control – you might get some food if you’re lucky.” — Victoria Pendleton

39. “I had sent out 100 audition tapes within 365 days, and then I got the ‘Dope’ audition. When I sent that out, two days later, my manager called me and said they wanted to fly me out to L.A. to audition.” — Shameik Moore

40. “When I was growing up, I saw the Aaliyah shirts, the DMX shirts, or the collab shirts with DMX and Aaliyah when they had a single together. Those were the dope collage shirts with their faces all over it. They were doing cool things like that.” — ASAP Ferg

Dope quotes that will make your day

You can be dope without being a dope. These dope quotes are all about being dope.

41. “It’s always dope being able to perform with your girlfriend and get money with your girlfriend.” — Meek Mill

42. “To be a book collector is to combine the worst characteristics of a dope fiend with those of a miser.” — Robertson Davies

43. “Coming from New York, you’re kind of indoctrinated with the anti-L.A. sentiment, but California is just a really dope state.” — Jesse Williams

44. “The last show we played, I was straight as a die. It did feel weird not to be hiding behind alcohol or dope, but being focused was good.” — Ronnie Wood

45. “My styling’s similar to Missy Elliott – I think she’s so dope. In a weird way, that’s how I first learned the American accent: doing American rap songs.” — Rebel Wilson

46. “I have visualizations where I’m living in a really cool place – probably outside of town – with a really dope studio where I can record music or film things.” — Reggie Watts

47. “People are getting cynical about the news. It doesn’t seem like there’s one place to watch where you get the straight dope. You watch the channel that proves your point.” — Jason Sudeikis

48. “Groups like The Mountain Brothers just have to keep on doing what they’re doing – just make it dope and just make it different. And not try to compete with other people of color.” — Chad Hugo

49. “Once I got to be about twenty-five, I got interested in the music of the time. I started smokin’ dope; I started drinking. I started slowing down and trying to find myself. I didn’t want to work in nightclubs.” — Gregory Hines

50. “What a turnaround in sentiment ‘Glee’ exemplifies. It was only a few years ago that pursuing the dream of a Broadway career or cabaret stardom relegated some poor yearning dope to a lavender ghetto of losers, self-deluders, and social rejects.” — James Wolcott

The meaning of dope continues to evolve

We have covered a lot of dope content and dope history.

We started with Dutch immigrants and ended with opium dens.

Those exciting parts of history are hundreds of years old.

How is dope used in a modern sense?

In our present day, the colloquial use of the word dope is derived from African American hip hop culture.

In African American communities, words are often flipped to supply new meanings.

This is a common practice within African American culture and denotes a unique existence within a larger exitance.

Famed African American scholar W.E.B. Debois coined the term double consciousness to describe the African American phenomenon of simultaneously living in two different cultures: Americans and African-Americans.

African American vernacular consists of many slang words resulting from generations of forced code-switching and figurative expression.

In the seventies and eighties, words like bad meant good, and words like dope meant cool.

Some of these references are derived from drug dealers who competed to make the best dope product, inferring that something dope was of the highest quality.