A Hip-Hop Classic: Nas' Illmatic
From New York to California, Nas' debut Illmatic Reigns Supreme
In 2008, 14 years after its initial release, Nas' debut album serves as the blueprint for any aspiring emcee hoping to create a classic.
Even after a first listen, Nas’ Illmatic comes off as much more than a supreme experiment in dazzling wordplay, vivid imagery, and enthralling musical backdrops; it emits a statement. Coming in at a mere 10 songs (including an intro), Nas’ debut is an array of awe-inspiring tracks pulled off with acute precision. Still a quintessential recording, Illmatic has managed to never be surpassed in scope or lyricism, standing firm and tall in history.
Illmatic's Lyricism
Illmatic, simply put, managed to reestablish New York as the home of hip-hop lyricism. Luckily, a young Nasir Jones managed to do so before The Notorious BIG arrived with Ready to Die later in that same year. Nas' poetry throughout the experience (no other word describes the feel) is perfectly articulated as he kicks out wisdom on everything from the drug game to life's glory.
On "New York State of Mind," Nas raps, "The smooth criminal on beat-breaks/Never put me in ya box if ya sh**eats tapes." This is an understatement laced with a sort of cocky confidence. Nas' lyrics seem to beautifully distend as his story progresses. By the end of the album, on "It Ain't Hard to Tell," he dabbles in pure lyrical genius with lines like, "Deep like The Shining/Sparkle like a diamond/Sneak an uzi on the island in my army jacket lining."
Whether due to his pernicious upbringing in Queensbridge Projects or his victories in life, Nas proves a poet of epic proportion each and every chance he gets.
The Producer's Rapper
Illmatic hosts an impressive array of producers ranging from the street-ballad composing DJ Premier to the eclectic Q-Tip. Despite the variance in producers, Nas seems at home on every track, commanding acute attention from the moment he begins to rap.
In a sense, it feels as if each song written by Nas had a beat created for it earlier in time. The jazzy sample loop on "Life's a Bitch" seems perfect for Nas' opening narration: "I woke up early on my born day/I'm 20/It's a blessing/The essence of adolescence leaves my body/Now I'm fresh." Furthermore, his creative choice in rhyme seems fit only for the chaotic sounds of "It Ain't Hard to Tell." Each set of rhyme and music is matched to a T.
The Legacy
Denying Illmatic its place in, not only hip-hop's legacy, but music's legacy is almost impossible. It is an opus that is inexplicable in regards to scope because of its humble creator. Seemingly, throughout the album, Nas is distraught at what he witnesses. This causes a sort of schizophrenic feel as Nas stumbles from swagger-filled gangster on "Represent" to a young man holding desperately onto the past on "Memory Lane."
Those 2 sides help Illmatic reach a level far greater than just copacetic; they transcend the album to reality. The listener relates with Nas' confused outlook on life as he struggles with what is right and wrong in Queens, New York. At the end of the day, the album easily reigns as one of hip-hop's classics, if not the greatest album ever offered to rap music.
Willingly or unwilling, what Nas managed to do on his debut was beyond what anyone could have imagined. Whether one can admit it or not (Jay-Z's Blueprint falls a bit short), this album has spent years influencing those who need direction. Illmatic is your favorite rapper's favorite album--the true blueprint.
