Illmatic by Nas
Growing up, my older brother and I were basketball fans. Being kids, it only made sense that we watched the very-family friendly Like Mike. In our zeal to become basketball players, we played the tracks from the soundtrack whenever we played against one another. That's when I was introduced to Nas. Rule is my favorite song by the urban poet and because of it, I wanted to go through more of his catalogue. He etched his name into hip-hop history from the second he got in with his iconic debut album, Illmatic. Known as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, debut album release of all-time, I thought it would be appropriate to have it as my first official classic album review on Rap Clash.
My first impression as I looked at the information from the album is the overall run time. Not even scratching forty minutes, the entire project is already looking good. Albums that are very long aren't all good because they can drag on or even lose sight of the overall concept, and no one wants filler. That was succeeded by the iconic cover art that has been called "one of the dopest album covers ever in hip-hop" by Bryan Crawford. The child, Nas at age 7, superimposed over a city block is something important. It tells a story; he's not over the Projects, but he's from it and a part of it and maybe the hope for this Illmatic was to get him out of that place so that he could help it grow. Deep. But, enough with the exposition, let's get into the album.
The first song, The Genesis, starts with the sound of New York Subways and conversations between Nas and other people over muffled rapping in the background. It has a vibe reminiscent of early hip-hop and is a nice introduction into the album. The song finishes by Nas imphatically saying the name of the album. The album continues smoothly with N.Y State of Mind, a technically poignant track by the MC. It knocked me off my feet with it's vivid imagery of the Big Apple, laced with very descriptive bars on how he considers himself the best rapper. Not a bad song whatsoever, the beat is good and he makes good use of it to accentuate his flow.
I never sleep, 'cause sleep is the cousin of death
Beyond the walls of intelligence, life is defined
The following track is Life's a Bitch featuring AZ, who delivers an impact filled featuring verse and hook over the soft jazz inspired beat. Nas continues his impeccable storytelling in this strong track, which has a lot of the realism that most alternative East Coast Hip-Hop acts were putting out but with a slightly grittier vibe. But the jazz is continued with anther definitive track in The World is Yours, a philosophical and lyrical masterpiece if I've ever heard one. The track is certified fire and most definitely one of my favorite tracks on the album. I understand why some people call it one of the greatest hip-hop songs ever written. But as I sat down and crossed my arms, Halftime, with its powerful trumpets and insane percussion came into my ears and I got lost in it's internal rhymes and poetic flow that came with it. The track is another home run by Nasty Nas and I'm starting to wonder if he can lose on this album. The production is stellar, and I feel as if the album will be flawless if they continue on this way.
While it doesn't feel like it, the rest of Illmatic is on a strange version of cruise control. All of the tracks are stellar. Memory Lane to It Ain't Head to Tell, it's an artist at his best. He doesn't give you time to breathe as he paints an elaborate and frankly beautiful image of life in The Projects in New York. Nas scratches the record and destroys the beast like a kid on a mission to represent and win for his hometown. This is rap at it's purest form.
Illmatic exceeded the high expectations that I had for when I started it. It rightfully deserves the title of a classic rap album with its awesome tracks, insane beats and an impeccable flow that permeates the entire record. It gets a coveted 10/10 score from me. There is so much someone can learn from this album if they are trying to become a rapper, from the importance of cadence, good production and even how to write, because after having listened to Nas' Illmatic, I learned more than any other rap album I've heard before and will probably hear. Maybe that's what so ill about it: its an adventure where the listener learns about the harsh reality that a kid that had nothing is forced to learn if they want to make something out of themselves...