he was just defiantly underground. he got dropped from the Firm and was never going to take that Diddy money. His first appearance was shortly after Nas but he didn't drop a debut (for a multitude of reasons) until 2001, long after he was young enough to seem relevant in an era that considered the likes of Ja Rule, Nelly and Jay-Z kings of the castle. You could throw DMX in there too, who was much more on Cormega's wavelength mentally, but he also had "Party Up", "Ruff Ryder's Anthem", "Who We Be". Unlike Cormega, he had a knack for not just catchy tracks, but HITS.


Cormega's not on that Nas level for the same reason that Nas' name rings louder than anyone in the Wu not named Method Man (maybe RZA): he probably truly didn't care whether or not it did. He just made/makes great music in his own lane and pretty much kills it every time out. I get the impression that's good enough for him, he has a loyal base and he can still call on all of the mid-90s heavy hitters pretty much whenever he wants for a solid if uncomplicated full length. And last year his best of compilation was released and it was a pretty creative spin on the traditional format.


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"This is the streets, and I am the trap." © Jay Bilas

http://www.last.fm/user/NodimaChee
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/archive/contributor/517
http://rateyourmusic.com/list/Nodima/run_that_shit__nodimas_hip_hop_handbook