Did It was written prevent Nas from becoming...

[MartyMcFly]

You entirely misinterpreted what I posted

Illmatic doesn't have songs like I Gave You Power, Black Girl Lost, Nas Is Coming, If I ruled the world, Street Dreams. Illmatic was more immaculate cohesive boom bap mc'ing than anything, IWW had more themes, more than just straight up spitting, and just more modern sound. That's the point of this thread. It stopped him from being lumped in the canibus lane where all he does is just rip tracks lyrically without direction or themes.

That's not a fair representation of illmatic to say that he was just ripping tracks though. illmatic has plenty of themes, whether they're sprinkled throughout tracks like New York State of Mind or The World is Yours, or overt like Life's a Bytch and One Love. Most of illmatic is storytelling, with Halftime and It Ain't Hard to Tell being the tracks where he just ripped them and wanted to get open on the mic. But aside from those two, most of the songs have themes

 

[Alexander Wiggin]

That's not a fair representation of illmatic to say that he was just ripping tracks though. illmatic has plenty of themes, whether they're sprinkled throughout tracks like New York State of Mind or The World is Yours, or overt like Life's a Bytch and One Love. Most of illmatic is storytelling, with Halftime and It Ain't Hard to Tell being the tracks where he just ripped them and wanted to get open on the mic. But aside from those two, most of the songs have themes

i was about to post this, illmatic contrary to what it seems was NOT a showoff album, that's the main difference for me between nas and early kool g rap and rakim, they were about destroying tracks, rakim could wrote a ny state of mind, and g rap could wrote a halftime, but none of them could wrote a one love or the world is yours. Nas was represent the thug era, g rap, canibus and rakim were more hip hop 101, then g rap brang out the mafioso them but he was still one dimentional. Nas was already displaying different facettes of him on illmatic, that's not explicit because illmatic is short, but that album is complete

 

[DaddyTime]

You entirely misinterpreted what I posted

Illmatic doesn't have songs like I Gave You Power, Black Girl Lost, Nas Is Coming, If I ruled the world, Street Dreams. Illmatic was more immaculate cohesive boom bap mc'ing than anything, IWW had more themes, more than just straight up spitting, and just more modern sound. That's the point of this thread. It stopped him from being lumped in the canibus lane where all he does is just rip tracks lyrically without direction or themes.

Ditto

 

[spliz]

The true Gift and Curse

Made him relevant commercially but made him diss-able. Nas was untouchable until he showed his flaw at the Source Awards
and became downright obsessed with getting famous and rich. Part of me hates that and another part understands. He was only 21 years.

Dude got jerked by the source..they chose the more commercial biggie instead..he also didn't sell much either..so he's getting all these props..just to get looked over by the source when it really matter and also have people bootleg the shyt out of his album and him not sell much..IWW was the best thing that nikka did in his entire career..fukk what people say about it..cause people will leave u stuck..

 

[Street Knowledge]

It was written is the album that made Nas a superstar.

I can't tell you how many people have told me "The first Nas song I ever heard was If I ruled the world"....

 

[infamousred]

russel simmons wouldn't even sign nas because he said he sounded too much like kool g rap. the difference is kool g rap has maintained his skill set much better than nas has. it's almost night and day actually.
anyway, steve stoute obviously had more control of iww than anyone. i'm sure he told nas "sign here, here, and here and i'll make you a star"
nas certainly wouldn't turn down a deal like that after releasing one of the greatest rap albums ever, and probably not seeing very much money off of it all.
he definitely deserved star status...i've just always been annoyed at who stoute chose to back him up for the majority of the album.
i know nas realized this too because the trackmasters were damn near non-existent for i am vs iww.
-another thing since it's basically on the same topic anyway...that production deal that nas and the other members of the firm had signed...it was obviously dealing with the trackmasters handling all their production. did cormega not sign the deal because they wanted too much money and/or because they weren't that good of producers? like i said, the last time they were really used was the firm album. it seemed like nas tried to avoid them for i am.

 

[prophecypro]

I always felt like sooner or later he would have embraced crossing over even if he didnt in 96

All his peers attempted to as well, even dudes who tried to diss him on the low about it at one point or another (Common, Roots)

 

[UpAndComing]

a Canibus, an O.C , Shyheim, Ras Kass, Mic Geronimo, Jeru Da Damaja, or a Kool G Rap, an ill mc but still on the underground tip or irelevant

He got a lot of heat for that album because the transition between illmatic and iww was brutal but he kept the same high lyrical game, and iww was more grimy that what it seems even if it took years for the fans to recognize that. Dude was just adapting to the new times, by the time 96 arrived, rap was dominated by west coast and new york rappers had to drop more commercial tracks, females on hooks were the new norm, pop samples, heavy bass and heavy drums, one year prior you could go gold with dark albums like the infamous and liquid sword, but after that you either had a strong fan base like mobb deep or wo or you had to adapt to a mainstream crowd.

It was written is probably the only reason nas was still in the discussion till 2000 after that he had to comeback with more artistic credibility and he did well but lets be real, in 96 no one was checking for pete rock and large pro even tho there were still great, the beatminerz were not the sound of the moment, same with the lord finesse sound. That was the turn of puffy, timbo, swizz, trackmasters, only primo still delivered on a high profile. All the cats after 96 had a commercial appeal, even oc on jewels, big pun, noreaga with the neptunes, think about big l who was about to drop a roc a fella album, i'm sure his album would have been far from his first. Nas did well like it or not, to be mention king of new york and be in the same league as biggie, illmatic which I think was better than ready to die and one of the best rap album and album all genra ever wasn't just enough, he had te sell strong and he did just that

But the old school backpackers don't wanna hear that though
They rather hear triple-syllabic rhyming over acapella beats

 

[Homeboy Runny-Ray]

You entirely misinterpreted what I posted

Illmatic doesn't have songs like I Gave You Power, Black Girl Lost, Nas Is Coming, If I ruled the world, Street Dreams. Illmatic was more immaculate cohesive boom bap mc'ing than anything, IWW had more themes, more than just straight up spitting, and just more modern sound. That's the point of this thread. It stopped him from being lumped in the canibus lane where all he does is just rip tracks lyrically without direction or themes.

i was responding to your "more animated" comment.

and nas was never in the cannibus lane.

NY state of mind
life's a b*tch
one love
the world is yours
memory lane

all these songs embody what you seem to want from an album.

 

[Homeboy Runny-Ray]

not a knock on anybody, and i hope nobody takes this as a diss.

but people need to just come out and say what it really is. just say that you like IWW more than illmatic because you identify with its sound more because its more up your era's alley.

IWW was great too, but it shouldnt be mentioned in the same breath as illmatic.

 

[Art Barr]

actually if nas, stayed true.
he would have had the same exact type of draw.
as, iww created for him.
as the culture, was on an upside draw wise with artist like:

mobb deep
redman
roots
CNN
OBFCL

all selling close to platinum off of cultural word of mouth, in their original sales envelope.
eventually, if he never sold out.
he would still be selling close to what he could have sold at this exact time right now.
plus, jay would have never blown up, either.
if nas never strayed from the culture.
to give that type of music a larger draw past what it would have been.
when nas sold out,..to the mca way of thought.
he grafted the mca model onto every type of rap artist, erroneously.
when, nas is a cultural artist that the mca model should never have been needed to sell records for him.

only reason why illmatic had poor sales was because nas did not follow.

duke never appeared at shows, from 1994-1996.
plus, was so awful at performing in 2001.
I seen the nikka have a booty shake contest, mid show and was awful performing his records.



art barr

 

[Art Barr]

I always felt like sooner or later he would have embraced crossing over even if he didnt in 96

All his peers attempted to as well, even dudes who tried to diss him on the low about it at one point or another (Common, Roots)

you talking about sellout always wannabe in the limelight style nikkaz like him though...


art barr

 

[Art Barr]

Dude got jerked by the source..they chose the more commercial biggie instead..he also didn't sell much either..so he's getting all these props..just to get looked over by the source when it really matter and also have people bootleg the shyt out of his album and him not sell much..IWW was the best thing that nikka did in his entire career..fukk what people say about it..cause people will leave u stuck..

I notice you leaving out his awful track record for noshowing from illmatic all the way till 2001, though.

real talk.....
big was with puff and selling out.
yet, I know for damn sure..
I saw big on more stages in other cities than nas, on videotape.
in an era where getting tape or footage like that was few and far between this viral age we have now.

nas, did it to himself, breh.......
all that source awards shyt was deflection......

you have to do the full gamut to draw in rap, and nas did not do the shows.

biggie had footage at black colleges going around like freaknic tapes.
nas, was no-showing to the people who were his exact crowd.

there is no excuse for nas, in that era.

to put it in proper perspective....
for starters...that nikka nas, no-showed ALCATRAZ....

THE fukk'n ALCATRAZ, breh.....


art barr

 

[spliz]

I notice you leaving out his awful track record for noshowing from illmatic all the way till 2001, though.

real talk.....
big was with puff and selling out.
yet, I know for damn sure..
I saw big on more stages in other cities than nas, on videotape.
in an era where getting tape or footage like that was few and far between this viral age we have now.

nas, did it to himself, breh.......
all that source awards shyt was deflection......

you have to do the full gamut to draw in rap, and nas did not do the shows.

biggie had footage at black colleges going around like freaknic tapes.
nas, was no-showing to the people who were his exact crowd.

there is no excuse for nas, in that era.

to put it in proper perspective....
for starters...that nikka nas, no-showed ALCATRAZ....

THE fukk'n ALCATRAZ, breh.....


art barr

No doubt..Nas was mad unprofessional during that era..all he wanted to do was hang out in the hood n shyt like that..nikka was mad antisocial and didn't even like interviews..that's why u always saw him drunk/high to the point of belligerence during interviews in that era..dude needed mental growth and a better business mind..u and I know that Diddy wasn't gonna let that shyt slide wit. Biggie..Biggie did mad shyt he didn't even wanna do under Diddy...but Diddy was far more in control of shyt when it came to guiding his artists...it's good Nas got his shyt together tho...

 

[Art Barr]

No doubt..Nas was mad unprofessional during that era..all he wanted to do was hang out in the hood n shyt like that..nikka was mad antisocial and didn't even like interviews..that's why u always saw him drunk/high to the point of belligerence during interviews in that era..dude needed mental growth and a better business mind..u and I know that Diddy wasn't gonna let that shyt slide wit. Biggie..Biggie did mad shyt he didn't even wanna do under Diddy...but Diddy was far more in control of shyt when it came to guiding his artists...it's good Nas got his shyt together tho...

cosign...


art barr