Shootouts is one of the most underrated hip hop tracks ever. Nas went nuts on that track.

It wasn't for illmatic being so perfect & historical but it was written is also lowkey one of the best rap albums all time period

Outlawz said that Tupac listened to this album religiously, borderline studying it just before his demise.  Would have been dope to hear them together on tracks once they squashed their beef.

Classic album. I prefer It Was Written over Illmatic. Nas really showcased his storytelling and wisdom in this album.

Dr Dre was saying that in the intro of “Nas Is Coming” bc he was really over that east/west beef. He left Death Row Records (the record label he founded) to start Aftermath Records. One of his first projects on Aftermath was executive producing The Firm (Nas, AZ, Foxy Brown, Cormega whom was later replaced by Nature). All east coast artists.

I dont know who Young Dolph is (im 38 years old) but I did hear the news today. R.I.P. to him. Thats crazy, I heard he was only 36 years old (two years younger than me). Thats still a young age to die. R.I.P. to him. I’ll check some of his music out.

Nas is the G.A.O.T. Hands down. Not even close. I from queens New York born and raised I grew up listening to these albums in the 90’s the golden era of hip hop. And Nas simply stood out. He’s the greatest till this day.

"If I Ruled The World" is one of the greatest Rap songs of all times.  It was probably best Urban song of 1996.

Nas Wrote Foxy Browns verse on Affirmative action. I had the actual CD back in the day. The booklet had all the lyrics & her verse just has his name over it.

On Street Dreams, fishscale is high quality coke

This is nas’ best body of work, Illmatic brought queens back after boogie down wiped them out but this is a masterpiece

TRACKLIST

01:18 1 - Album Intro
03:43 2 - The Message                                                  [prod. Trackmasters]
07:46 3 - Street Dreams                                                [prod. Trackmasters]
13:24 4 - I Gave You Power                                           [prod. DJ Premier]
17:22 5 - Watch Dem Ni**as (feat. Foxy Brown)       [prod. Trackmasters]
21:52 6 - Take It in Blood                                               [prod. Live Squad]
26:18 7 - Nas is Coming (feat. Dr. Dre)                       [prod. Dr. Dre]
32:42 8 - Affirmative Action (feat. The Firm)             [prod. Trackmasters]
39:47 9 - The Set Up (feat. Havoc)                              [prod. Havoc]
43:06 10 - Black Girl Lost (feat. Joel "JoJo" Hailey) [prod. L.E.S.]
46:13 11 - Suspect                                                         [prod. L.E.S.]
50:10 12 - Shootouts                                                     [prod. Trackmasters]
54:53 13 - Live Ni**a Rap (feat. Mobb Deep)            [prod. Havoc]
59:32 14 - If I Ruled the World (feat. Lauryn Hill)      [prod. Trackmasters]

Take it in blood made me fall in love with the craft of writing rhymes.

“Currency is made in trust of the messiah/ I’m spending it to get higher/ earth, wind and fire singing reasons why I’m/ up early trustworthy as a 9 that bust early/ sun shining in my grill I spill, remy on imaginary graves , throw my hat on my waves/ Latter Day Saint, save religious praise…”

The illest shit I ever heard!! The first two bars of that verse is the rawest metaphor/double entendre/use of figurative language I ever heard.

It Was Written is a more polished Nasty Nas than illMatic in my opinion.

The guitar part of "the Message" is a sample from a Sting's song named "Shape of my Heart", you can hear it it's a good one too...

It’s his work like this that makes nas my favorite rapper of all time

this was my fav Nas album.  So many memorable beats.  'The Message' still my fav Nas song all time.
Wish he and Raekwon had done an album together.

Younger Nas Was gangster.  We get older and we learn from it and melo out

This is rapping at its absolute peak.

“The set up” hits different because while i was in my neighborhood during quarantine, a car would be blasting this before police would do their curfew sweeps

The Set Up, Take It in Blood, Shootouts, and Live N Rap are my joints off this album.