shyt is a classic. If popular nikkas started posting Nas unreleased shyt publicly it would have nikkas goin crazy. lol. 98-99 Nas was some spooky shyt. nikka had that hood monk aura. lol.
Irv Gotti said that the reason he wanted to sign Nas was because even though he had the ladies with Ashanti and the mainstream with Ja, he didn’t have anybody the street nikkas rocked with. He said at that time Nas was like God to street nikkas so he knew it would be an incredible signing.
I’m convinced that 98-99 era Nas is what solidified him amongst street nikkas. Illmatic was for the hip hop heads. It Was Written was for a more mainstream audience while not sacrificing lyrical quality, but nikkas absolutely LOVE I am era Nas.