I think I figured out where Nas goes wrong sometimes

[Pop123]

Let's look at his history real quick. Them joints he got with the Neptunes (Popular Thug, Nas's Angels, etc..) were trash. Most people agree that his work with Dr Dre (The Firm era, except Phone Tap) was very lackluster. His work with Timbaland (You owe me, etc...) is lackluster. All his shyt with Swizz has been garbage. His past work with Kanye has been solid, nothing groundbreaking but okay.

Then look at his shyt with Preme, and Large Professor, and Pete Rock, and Havoc, and LES when he is in his bag, etc...marriage made in heaven like 95% of the time.

That hip hop shyt, that traditional sound, that is his sweet spot. His most critically acclaimed albums (Illmatic, Lost Tapes, Stillmatic) got that texture, that hip hop shyt, that's his comfort zone and its obvious. He sounds off when he tries to do what Jayz does. I got Nas ahead of Jayz all time but Jayz is much more versatile musically, he can do a Preme beat dirty, then the next song is him doing a Timbaland beat dirty, then the next song is him doing a Kanye beat dirty, etc... He is like Biggie in a sense, they can make all different kinds of records with all types of tempos and shyt...but someone like Nas, or Rakim, or Gza or somebody, they have a sweet spot, that gritty hip hop shyt, it sounds off when they divert from it a lot of times.

Think of all your favorite Nas joints ever, I bet you none of them shyts are produced by a big commercial producer. Keep my man away from these commercial guys with these big and worldly productions and get him in there with the dudes that we all know we want to hear him with.

 

[classicmaterial]

Trackmasters produced "The Message" and "Affirmative Action"

Also Lost Tapes isn't an album it's a compilation

 

[laughslikebig]

Let's look at his history real quick. Them joints he got with the Neptunes (Popular Thug, Nas's Angels, etc..) were trash. Most people agree that his work with Dr Dre (The Firm era, except Phone Tap) was very lackluster. His work with Timbaland (You owe me, etc...) is lackluster. All his shyt with Swizz has been garbage. His past work with Kanye has been solid, nothing groundbreaking but okay.

Then look at his shyt with Preme, and Large Professor, and Pete Rock, and Havoc, and LES when he is in his bag, etc...marriage made in heaven like 95% of the time.

That hip hop shyt, that traditional sound, that is his sweet spot. His most critically acclaimed albums (Illmatic, Lost Tapes, Stillmatic) got that texture, that hip hop shyt, that's his comfort zone and its obvious. He sounds off when he tries to do what Jayz does. I got Nas ahead of Jayz all time but Jayz is much more versatile musically, he can do a Preme beat dirty, then the next song is him doing a Timbaland beat dirty, then the next song is him doing a Kanye beat dirty, etc... He is like Biggie in a sense, they can make all different kinds of records with all types of tempos and shyt...but someone like Nas, or Rakim, or Gza or somebody, they have a sweet spot, that gritty hip hop shyt, it sounds off when they divert from it a lot of times.

Think of all your favorite Nas joints ever, I bet you none of them shyts are produced by a big commercial producer. Keep my man away from these commercial guys with these big and worldly productions and get him in there with the dudes that we all know we want to hear him with.

thing is he stuck to no name producers and nikkas complained they wanted to hear him on big name producers beats.

 

[laughslikebig]

Lost Tapes isn't an album it's a compilation

by that logic every album is a compilation. because alot of albums are records were recorded in different times and places.

by your logic... nas' next album is a compilation because he's recorded it over the past 6 years in different spaces and places. if he takes 3 songs from every year he hasnt dropped a album... its the same as lost tapes because those were songs that he had recorded during the past few years.

 

[Jimmy Two-Times™]

by that logic every album is a compilation. because alot of albums are records were recorded in different times and places.

by your logic... nas' next album is a compilation because he's recorded it over the past 6 years in different spaces and places. if he takes 3 songs from every year he hasnt dropped a album... its the same as lost tapes because those were songs that he had recorded during the past few years.

You don't know the difference between an album and a compilation?

 

[Cynic]

He's been in the game since the early 90s ... He gave you iIlmatic, It Was Written, Stillmatic, Distant Relative and Life Is Good and now Nasir

What more do you want ? An artist who never experiments ?

 

[Piff Perkins]

I think Nas is at his worst when he is either overthinking things, or trying to chase a mainstream sound/hit. The overthinking often comes into play when picking bad beats or muddying tracks with convoluted concepts when shyt talking would make more sense. In terms of chasing the hits, we all know the tracks that gave us.

If rap is a sport, you can view some beats/sounds as home games and others as away games. You know how Ghost sounds perfect over soulful shyt? Those are his home games. Ross sounds good over lush instrumentals. Those are his home games. And Nas sounds the best over hard drums, dope basslines, and moody samples. Home games. Nas' away games tend to be more elaborate, expensive sounding beats and slow bpm drums.

 

[Carlton Banks]

Simply put... Nas makes music you listen to one time and go "oh that was cool" ... But his music ain't something you gonna play over and over again. Get rich or die trying was an album you played over and over again cuz it's a good listen. Dope beats, dope rhymes, catchy hooks... This music shyt ain't that hard. I can't listen to no God's Son or Streets Disciple over and over.

 

[mortuus est]

i think it just depends on personal taste tbh

i like owe me (although genuwine bodies the hook), nas is coming by dr dre and summer on smash by swizz

nas can make different types of tracks, he just doesn't have to keep making dozens of nas is like records all the time

 

[Gravity]

thing is he stuck to no name producers and nikkas complained they wanted to hear him on big name producers beats.

Heres the thing. Nas fans will never be satisfied as long as jay z overshadows him. It's not even about the material at this point. He has the classics and the respect. All the new music he gives the fans should be seen as a blessing. If jay and beyonce hadn't of dropped the Nas coalition would be in a much much better space.

 

[laughslikebig]

You don't know the difference between an album and a compilation?

a compilation in regarss to hip hop is more than one artist... lyricits lounge, ruff ryders vol 1, soundbombing are compilations...

at best u can say lost tapes is a best of... but what definition is it a compilation.

if nas named the album "Nasdaq" and never said the songs were from the vault would it still be a compilation???? u would just call it a album

 

[QU Hectic]

The Cross Prod. by Em was pretty dope.

 

[laughslikebig]

Simply put... Nas makes music you listen to one time and go "oh that was cool" ... But his music ain't something you gonna play over and over again. Get rich or die trying was an album you played over and over again cuz it's a good listen. Dope beats, dope rhymes, catchy hooks... This music shyt ain't that hard. I can't listen to no God's Son or Streets Disciple over and over.

 

[Stick Up Kid]

Nas is the most overanalyzed artist of all time


The amount of Trash Hov has put out in his career is astounding, but Nas is the one that gets critiqued

 

[IllmaticDelta]

Simply put... Nas makes music you listen to one time and go "oh that was cool" ... But his music ain't something you gonna play over and over again. Get rich or die trying was an album you played over and over again cuz it's a good listen. Dope beats, dope rhymes, catchy hooks... This music shyt ain't that hard. I can't listen to no God's Son or Streets Disciple over and over.