Nas - Fallen Stars Flying
https://youtu.be/d1GiWy4Gsck

Black Thought featuring Ledisi - American Heartbreak
https://youtu.be/hL1ejzgIlfk

Figured the greatest two MCs of all-times n shit deserved their own post for these two great songs.

From HBOs special adaptation of Ta-Nehisi’s 2015 masterpiece Between The World And Me.

Anyone know if more songs are coming from this?

Another one that’s even older that still basically raps on the same level is Kool G Rap. GOATS, no question.

And hasn’t been for a looong time.

Honestly, thought you were going to say Masta Ace.

He’s a respectable answer.

As much as I love KGR, Rakim, KRS...they are not on the same level as Nas and Black Thought when taking longevity into account.

Although Rakim was dope on the Busta album.

That’s similar output to Nas and Thought in that decade.

But my point was more that....he still raps like he always did. 50+ G Rap doesn’t....rap like he’s 50+. It’s crazy. Same with Thought and Nas, though Nas is a few years younger.

Didn’t mean to imply he couldn’t still rap his ass off.

....and there's been a lot the past few years ..he's as dope as ever

Dude is still sharp

You get easily tired of listening to them, and they are both terrible at selecting beats.

Thought shines the best with the roots, but solo, his beats are terrible.

And NAS has a history of selecting terrible beats.

Both lack music consistency.

Rakim, KRS, even common..4-5 straight albums of consistent heat.

And Doom and Roc Marciano have taken consistency to whole other level ...especially Roc for an entire decade of dope material.

Nas has too many shit albums like the Kanye album. He has released 13 studio albums, but the majority of them are wack as full albums. His dopest album is his first album...no argument. And that’s bad. You can’t sit down and have a debate on which one of Nas’ album is the best like you can with other greats.

You’re priceless.

Roc Marciano...lol

This dude said Roc Marciano.

His problem IS consistency...dude needs to switch up that snooze fest approach he has.

He does sound pretty cool in his adlibs though...you know, the ones where he acts like his lyrics blew his own mind.

Roc Marciano and Griselda are both holding down New York.

Every last one of Roc’s albums is heat..pure heat. From Marcberg to Marcielago, and he created a lane that a lot of MCs are swimming in now for an entire decade.

Nas and Black Thought are dope MCs, no doubt about it. But as far as full albums go, Nas has one pure classic album, black thought as a solo MC has zero.

Take Jay Z, and I hate Jay, but he has so many pure classic albums.

If you drop 13 focking studio albums , and only one truly stands out? I’m just saying.

And you dissing Roc Marciano makes it hard to take you seriously.

Of course...the “Jay has classics and Nas doesn’t” argument.

Keep ruining your credibility with each reply.

Illmatic > Reasonable Doubt
It Was Written > In My Lifetime Vol 1
I Am > Hard Knock Life
Nastradamus > Vol 3
The Firm = Dynasty
Stillmatic > Blueprint
God’s Son > BP 2
Street’s Disciple < The Black Album
Hip-Hop Is Dead > Kingdom Come
Untitled < American Gangster
Distant Relatives > Watch The Throne
Life Is Good > BP 3
Nasir = Magna Carta
King’s Disease > 4:44

Let’s not forgot Nas did that trash QB album...

But damn...let’s not forget Jay did two trash albums with the child predator.

I see what’s going on here. You’re a Nas fan.

I’m not into either like that. I was just making a comparison, that Nas doesn’t have the albums or hits like Jay....I’m not on the wagon of either.

I’m a Doom, Rakim, KRS, Kool Keith, Roc, Griselda type of guy. I need to hear intricate lyrical jewels.

Again, Nas isn’t wack. Top 10, Top 20 MC, no doubt about it. ....

But he has too many wack ass albums ...13 albums, but the majority of them are musically wack.

For that matter it’s better than any Jay-Z album too. Jay got TWO albums that can be considered classics. The rest of them shits are not even better than Stillmatic.

He went from Nasty Nas to that Escobar shiny suit shit...that’s where he fell off.

It’s a Cheezy ass Gambino album.

“Behold a Dark Horse” slaps the shit out of it was written.

It’s an entirely different lyrical Nas compared to illmatic, live at the BBQ, back to the grill, and halftime. It was a very commercial album, and was not well received by the underground.

Nas is a great MC. It’s just that his music direction after illmatic was very bad, so instead of getting classic album after classic album, we got a few gems here and there, but nothing even close to illmatic.

There are tons of videos, articles, etc, about how Nas musically fell off at illmatic, or has been unable to make another classic album.

If I want to listen to Illmatic, I listen to Illmatic. I don’t need part 2. I don’t need it to be “underground”. I don’t care about labels. As long as the music is good....which it was.

Lol

I guess an L-Boogie single and a pink suit in the Street Dreams video voids all the hard shit like The Message, I Gave You Power, Shootouts, Live N Rap...I mean should I keep adding songs that don’t fit your commercial mold? Suspect, Set-Up, Affirmative Action...

I mean damn...those are some soft ass songs.

>Lol
>
>I guess an L-Boogie single and a pink suit in the Street
>Dreams video voids all the hard shit like The Message, I Gave
>You Power, Shootouts, Live N Rap...I mean should I keep adding
>songs that don’t fit your commercial mold? Suspect, Set-Up,
>Affirmative Action...
>
>I mean damn...those are some soft ass songs.


What about that cringy as fuck Dr Dre track lol.. But yeah those songs are actually soft (sonicly) compared to Illmatic.. and you know Nas LPs must ALWAYS be compared to illmatic.. thats the price to pay for dropping what many consider the greatest rap album of all time.

The Dre track was dope as fuck on the commercial for the album and then when we got the album we were like “nah...” LOL

That beat isn’t bad though. It’s the hook that really does it in.

And I disagree that those songs are soft “sonically” compared to Illmatic.

Live N Rap is harder than Life’s A Bitch.

Memory Lane has a softer more melodic sample than I Gave You Power.

The comparison to Illmatic is something old jaded heads like you have an issue with.

Fact is, if Nas never switched it up, he would’ve been hated for that.

I personally don’t need every song to be hard. I like more dynamics to my albums. So joints like Watch Dem and Black Girl Lost and If I Ruled The World actually make a more complete album in my opinion.

And Nas is rapping his ASS OFF on IWW more than he was on Illmatic.

5 Trackmasters beats.. 1 corny dre beat.. 1 cheesy lead single..

it's a MUCH softer record, than illmatic.


Is it a bad record? Of course not, it's a great record. Compared to Illmatic though, that shit is easy listening.

>And Nas is rapping his ASS OFF on IWW more than he was on
>Illmatic.
>

>
>>And Nas is rapping his ASS OFF on IWW more than he was on
>>Illmatic.


Nas rhymes were never a critique of any of his records... it's always been beat selection.

It's funny how we still hold onto our 96 perspective of an artist. When IWW came out, I too was like, what the fuck is this flashy BS. But listening now (25 yrs later...lol) you realize how good IWW really is.

Don't hold onto your old ass perspective of any artist.




werd.

All talking points, no substance

LOL

And I'm not even a Nas fan like that. I also try to keep in mind that all of this is subjective.

But some things are objectively untrue...like Roc Marc > Nas lol


Dude raps like he has severe brain trauma or some shit.


KA has taken Roc's style to places Roc couldn't touch in a million years.


Either way dude is posting about this shit like he read up on it rather than listened.

You guys fail to read or converse without the personal takes.


Personally, I said “Behold a darkhorse” is better than “it was written”

And the fact that you said Roc rhymes like he has brain damage makes zero sense,
when Roc has been one of the illest MCs in hip hop for the past 10 years.

And when you have some of the greatest MCs to ever rhyme to have Roc in their top 10, and platforms like Rap Radar, Okayplayer Music, etc to have Roc as one of the best MCs of the last decade, then you know he is legit. This dudes run is historical. 10 straight years of releasing nothing but gems and classic, and personally reigniting New York hip hop. It was unheard of to rhyme with no beat, or to just rhyme over a melody for an entire album. Now everyone is doing it.

I never said that Nas was lyrical wack. I said his music and beats after illimatic are lackluster, which hurts his legacy. This isn’t anything new. This has always been the knock against Nas.

you're wrong and tripping...again

Black Thought has rhymed over several wack ass beats.

Black Thought Stream of Thoughts Vol 1 and 2, not lyrically wack, but musically lackluster. I expected more musically, and I’m not a huge 9th wonder fan.

I was raised off of NYC hip hop so I expect a certain level of beats.

My favorite thought tracks are “Clones”, “Distortion to Static”, thought over everybody. Those are beats that really allow his rhymes to shine.

But this recent shit he did is garbage

https://youtu.be/zBNMj2GGjps

Thought can’t be on shit like that.

Maybe it’s me. I expect that New York shit in all hip hop I hear.

.

>I expect that New York shit in all hip hop I
>hear.

Beats and choruses just don’t pop. He will have have maybe 1-3 songs on the album that will really bang, but the majority of the album will be vanilla or bland.

Nas sounds his best over an Extra P or Primo beat.

Now I do like the feel of King’s Disease. I feel what Hit-Boy was trying to do.

Being a true hip hop head and growing up with Nasty Nas, and the sound that extra p
had him rhyming over, I haven’t heard shit since from Nas that captures that same nastiness.

It’s like talking about Floyd Mayweather...Pretty Boy Floyd is close to the greatest shit I have ever seen, but when he turned to Money Mayweather, got all flashy and shit, the fights weren’t the same. Nasty Nas pre-it was written = PBF. He has been Escobar ( Money Mayweather) Nas ever since.

...he'd satisfy old heads and also whoever it is that likes what he does on these blah albums. ...he's a weird dude

The Lesson don’t never change lol

it's marvelous.

As is the album you’re usernamed after