and i aint gassing up illmatic, but, you know i gotta defend why i think its the GOAT album, you can dispute it if you want..
Why illmatic is GOAT...
- It is the one of the most creative, coherent and lyrical album of all music genre.
- the Intro (genesis) shits on some rappers entire catalogue (yayo comes into mind and so does the ying yang twins) lol, just had to get it in there.
-the album is laced by the best producers in hiphop - preem, large pro, q-tip, LES and pete rock. damn, put rza and dre on the album and itll prolly get 10 mics.
-life's a b*tch, the best song of that year, gave an unknown bk rapper by the name of AZ his recording deal. and that is saying a lot since classics like 'juicy,' 'i used to love h.e.r.' and albums like 'hard to earn,' 'southernplayacadillacmuzik' and 'dare iz a darkside' are released on the same year. and to top it off, he even let his pops bless the song with beautiful trumpet sounds on the end of the track. its pure artistry.
-nas captured the elements of MCing that all the old school heads have been doing, and put it in one LP. the gangsta/street (One Love) the party/anthem (Halftime, Represent) the revolutionary (the world is yours) the storytelling (NY state of Mind, One Love) and the conscious rap (life's a *****, memory lane).
-it is the most sampled, referenced and talked about hiphop album of all time.
-when the album dropped rappers just seemed to take it in and examine the lyrical prowess of the album. no diss to the lyricist of the golden age but nobody is fuc*in with nasty nas on 94'. ghostface, raekwon, scarface has admitted to this.
-even tho rakim introduced the new school and started that scientific rap, nas just took it on another level - multis, history and invisible rhyme patterns.
-after all that's been said and done, after hearing all that lyrical gems you gotta remember that this album was done by a 20 year old brother from the hood who dropped out of 8th grade.
so there you have it.
the only thing that got a chance on your list is the wutang... and to me theyre just equal. and that album is a group album done by an incredible producer who is probly the only DJ who mastered the art of creating those sonic beats. plus the album got a few flaws courtesy of u-god.
and sorry but blackstar isnt even top 10 on my list (i havent really zoned out on the album tho)
illmatic = jordan
blackstar = pippen
peace
P.S. please drop some thoughts on my breakdown of the 'TWIY' verse... ill appreciate it
Honestly, everything you've said and are gonna say about Illmatic has been said already for over 10 years. I mean, It's cool that you're this hype about Nas, but go into detail about why his other albums are great. As a hip-hop fan, I've heard everything there is to say about Illmatic and I'm more interested in hearing about his less talked about albums.
And The World is Yours > Life's a *****
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I do take into account that Wu-Tang have the advantage of power in numbers however I was ranking 36 Chambers vs Illmatic as albums not Nas vs Wu Tang as artists. I think Nas is a more talented rapper than any of the Wu Tang Clan but I still rank their album higher.
Well really.. Blackstar isn't an album that's easy to directly compare to Illmatic cause while Illmatic has much better beats and wordplay, there's a lot more to think about behind blackstar's lyrics. They excel in different areas.. it's just a matter of which you prefer.
Mos Def and Nas are different kinds of lyricist. Nas is the kind of lyricist that will pull out every trick in the book and wow you with literal devices and slang. Mos Def is the kind of lyricist that won't spit his verse in such a fancy way but will still leave you thinking about his words for a while afterward. If you tried to do a lyrical breakdown of "Thieves in The Night" the same way you did with "The World Is Yours" you'd find yourself dealing in more dept with one powerful issue rather than a bunch of random yet clever one liners. So it's just a matter of technique vs substance. I prefer theme based lyrics for the most part. Not saying Nas has weak content just not as good as Mos Def. And Mos is generally mediocre as a technical lyricist.
I'd say it's a pretty good breakdown.. definitely can see you've put more thought into that song than I ever did.. though I think you might be overreaching with your breakdown of "The thief's theme, play me at night, they won't act right."
Seems like it's just a blatant party reference to me. Your interpretation of "play me at night" is a bit insightful but the fact that it's followed with "they won't act right" seems to infer that he makes music that drives people crazy, gets them hyped. The night part just seems to create the setting of a party.
Last edited by Afro Cheese on Jan 6th, 2006 at 11:21 PM
im trying to do all of nas' albums by the way, but i was trying to start wit illmatic since apparently some people havent heard it yet... and its the most complex and needs the most analysis.
11 years and we are still just scratchin the surface of this classic LP
ill just do a breakdown on life's a b1tch, then ill do 'i am" or 'nastradamus.' which one you want?
ill appreciate it if people can help me out tho...
why dont you do a breakdown on your fave nas joint? cmon doom help me out.
to me nas is a deep dude, 'illmatic' showed this, 'it was written' showed this, i am, nastradamus, god's son... especially street's disciple
here are some quotes from illmatic :
"I need a new nigga, for this black cloud to follow
Cause while it's over me it's too dark to see tomorrow"
-the world is yours
"I switched my motto -- instead of sayin f*ck tomorrow
That buck that bought a bottle could've struck the lotto"
-life's a b1tch
"**** 'rap is real', watch the herbs stand still
Never talkin to snakes cause the words of man kill
True in the game, as long as blood is blue in my veins
I pour my Heineken brew to my deceased crew on memory lane"
-Memory Lane
"My mic check is life or death, breathin a sniper's breath"
-it aint hard to tell
"and told my little man that i'm a go cyprose
there's some jewels in the skull that he can sell if he chose
words of wisdom from nas try to rise up above
keep an eye out for jake shorty what
one love"
-one love
Yeah but don't all of those fall under the category of "clever one liners" besides the quote from One Love? I'm not denying that Nas is deep.. But i haven't seen him choose a topic and go into it in detail like I've seen with rappers like say Mos Def and Common. Nas is usually a more loose, less tied down rapper in his themes. I mean even in his conscious songs like Life's A ***** he's all over the place. If you can, quote a verse of his with one common theme or philosophy that he attacks from a new angle or analyzes in a seriously intellectual way.
Don't get me wrong.. I love Illmatic. I can't say I'm really all that familiar with his work after Illmatic though. I've given It Was Written listens here and there and heard random songs off all his other shit but I haven't really gotten into any of his albums like I did Illmatic.
fetus is a craaazy joint, but its hard to say its his most lyrical piece since doo rags, nothin lasts forever, blaze a 50 and poppa was a player (in my opinion) are all better than fetus... flow-wise and lyrical wise.
fam (can i call you that?) you seriously need to peep more nas songs
and i wont only quote you a verse i would give you whole tracks:
if i ruled the world
black girl lost
-it was written
we will survive
ghetto prisoners
i wanna talk to you
-i am
life we chose
some of us have angels
God loves us
-nastradamus (his most hated album, peeps are saying this was too pop/commercial. i dunno, nigga came with that heat. IMO, it's a 'hood' album that's why many dudes cant relate.or maybe because nas made it, that's why they expected so much more. definitely deserves more than 3 mics)
2nd childhood <--- my opinion, the last classic song of hiphop. the theme, the message, the storytelling... perfect. plus the beat... OMG
what goes around
-stillmatic
dance
thugz mansion
i can
-God's son
A Message to the Feds, Sincerely, We the People
American Way
War
-street's disciple
^all this joints are a testament to nas' deepness. he was the first conscious rapper that i really liked. "Cause it's trendy to be the conscious MC
But next year, who knows what we'll see?"
hell, even the intro to sd is deep...
peep this: Peace, how you?
I aint mean to be late, it was my night to watch my little girl.
It's chilly out here.
What happened, you cryin?
Ya'll got into it again, huh?
See you gotta let em know, from the jump, I don't care who they are, or who they with.
Yeah, I know they know we talking.
Why don't they just leave us alone?
I know it's hard for them to understand people like us can love each other.
Come on, stop cryin' now.
Oh, there's somethin I gotta tell you, I heard they watchin you, yeah they watching you.
They watchin me too.
But there aint no reason to get low, I'm proud, I'm here.
You know, Imma stand up for you, no matter what; and I konw you'll stand up for me.
I don't have no doub about you bein true to me.
The world is ours, but right now i feel like the whole world is against us.
So study, be strong, don't cry no more.
I woke up early on my born day, I'm twenty years of blessing
^this is really simple but nas just made it sound so slick. he "wakes up early" cuz he's really excited about this new year in his life. he also professes that his entire life (since he's 20 at the time) has been a blessing... a contradiction to the title of the song, listen carefully to later rhymes, because it will be talking about the different times of his life. i just realized this recently thanks to a friend of mine.
The essence of adolescence leaves my body now I'm "fresh in"
^means that on his 20th birthday he understood a very important part in every persons life, he realizes that he is no longer a boy but a man. the "essence of adolescence" leaves him (20 is no longer teenager), and he is being born anew, into a man.
My physical frame is celebrated cause I made it
One quarter through life some god-ly like thing created
^this was based from Moses when he referred to a man's life = 80, therefore 1/4 = 20. he's referring to himself.
Got rhymes 365 days annual plus some
Load up the mic and bust one,
^another one of the goats sick metaphors... he's saying he get rhymes everyday for a whole year. second line means that his weapon is the mic, the ammo is his brain/rhymes... and he has infinite ammo. just like a glitch'd duke nukem
cuss while I puss from my skull
cause it's pain in my brain vein money maintain
Don't go against the grain simple and plain
^he curse/'cuss' because the puss in his brain are causing him pain, most peeps can relate to this... when we're hurt we cuss, simple. puss(green stuff in wounds) are infections, he's basically saying he's mind is infected. its infected of the 'money maintain' principle, obviously because he doesnt have it. 'Don't go against the grain' means he wants to be in or he wants to belong with the other people who are getting that dough around him, he wants to do what others are doing whatever that might be.
REWIND, nas switches it back to when he was a kid with the next line...
When I was young at this I used to do my thing hard
Robbin foreigners take they wallets they jewels and rip they green cards
^basically self-explanatory, he does things the way he knows how and 'by any means necessary'. the use of "foreigners" means that these people arent familiar or they are new to the surrounding, therefore they are pretty helpless people in a 'foreign land' showing that Nas didnt care or give a fuq who you are, showing no mercy... therefore strengthening the line about how he does things hard
FAST FORWARD, nas takes you to a 'later' time
Dipped to the projects flashin my quick cash
and got my first piece of ass smokin blunts with hash
^nas is no longer that new kid, basically saying he's the 'man' now... he can 'dip through hoods' because dudes are showing him love and respect, and he can 'flash his cash' because he is certain that no one would rob him. the second line is showing how he is enjoying his new life.. he is becoming the Boss of his hood
PRESENT, you see how sick this track is?
Now it's all about cash in abundance, niggaz I used to run with
is rich or doin years in the hundreds
^the realization of his dreams. he is now the boss, top dog, whatever of his hood. and he is commenting about how this kind of life is so uncertain. you can either strike it big.. like his niggas that are rich or you can end up losing it all in the end... like his niggas who are "doing years by the hundreds"
I switched my motto -- instead of sayin **** tomorrow
That buck that bought a bottle could've struck the lotto
^remember when he was a kid, how he do things hard and how he doesnt give a f*ck, now he's changed. he's more optimistic about things... he sees life as a "blessings". and he is basically more hopeful towards life.
Once I stood on the block, loose cracks produce stacks
I cooked up and cut small pieces to get my loot back
^nas reminisces (sp?) about his old self, talking about all the hustle he done. after he lost his loot he didnt quit he went back to the table and started hustlin from scratch. an insight to nas' perspective about success and failures.
Time is Illmatic keep static like wool fabric
Pack a four-matic that crack your whole cabbage
^he's saying time is precious. Keep static like wool fabric is just a clever way of sayin “live life”, a theme revisited on “live now”. keep static can also mean "dont be stagnant" or "stay charged". the second line means that altho he has learned a lot... it doesnt mean you can just **** with him, he keeps that "four-matic" (.45) just in case anybody wanna test him. Basically saying he's still worried about the dangers of life.
naw i didnt get why you said up earlier, doesnt really matter tho.
most of them are right on, ive never really broken it down like that before. i think you might be reading a bit too much into some of those tho, in the world is yours the thiefs theme line and the pass the margin line.
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Jan 6th, 2006 05:36 PM
) you seriously need to peep more nas songs
