Official Nas Thread

[spliz]

It’s an unbelievable amount of super nice emcees that feel the same way. Even G Rap feels this way. Look at the way Havoc spoke on it.

 

[Figaro]

Nas has sold over 25 MILLION ALBUMS in the United States throughout his career. Thats more than Mary J Blige, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and some others who have performed at the Superbowl.


Saying Nas doesn’t have “Star Power” for the superbowl is absolutely ridiculous. There’s only one rapper in the United States who is equal to Nas in Billboard top ten placements for albums, and thats Jay-Z. And you wouldn’t dare say Jay doesn’t have the “star power” for a Superbowl performance.

Nas has sold 25 million records over 16/17 albums lol that’s not star power.

Mary J Blige has not headlined Super Bowl by herself.

Lady Gaga & Katy Perry have a much bigger world status then Nas which the Super Bowl takes in to consideration.

Billboard is not a metric all the time for star power man lol. Especially when most of Nas high record sales came early in his career.

You might not want to admit it but Jay has bigger hits, known more world wide & is a better live performer then Nas to make Super Bowl successful but even in 2025 & beyond I’m not sure if Jay Super Bowl will get good viewership.

 

[Soymuscle Mike]

Never in my life associated Esco with the Superbowl lol, that one time he showed up at an MTV AWARDS with Murda Inc already felt akward as hell.

I think I, being the Stan y'all know I am, would hate it. I didn't watch a second of Clipse at the Vatican because I don't need my HipHop to be validated by those pedophiles or the fukking Superbowl crowd (y'all know).

That said I loved the Dre and Dot bowls, but Westcoast music kind of lends itself more to these kind of venues. Nas shyt is for my soul even though I agree with @spliz that we shouldn't underestimate that Nas has bangers. If KDot can do Peekaboo, Nas could do some of his known shyt. Dot's Superbowl, which I loved, kiiiiiind of gets overrated because of the online viral shyt (which is 99% NLU, Luther and TV Off) - I highly doubt the physical crowd was vibing to some of the other GNX joints (the online crowd for sure was which we saw in the streaming numbers).

 

[MikeStamina]

Superbowl isn't the barometer for a rapper's rapper. It was a tongue in cheek question that didn't really warrant this kind of radio/public discourse imo.

That's your opinion.
You're also calling it a "barometer"
The interviewer didn't frame it in that fashion

A few years ago the SB was not even an option for rappers. It's only right the biggest artists in the genre...past n present...might get asked how they feel about it

So if Nas would've said he'd love to do it, your response will be what??? He doesn't have the catalog to?

 

[MikeStamina]

Nas has sold 25 million records over 16/17 albums lol that’s not star power.

Mary J Blige has not headlined Super Bowl by herself.

Lady Gaga & Katy Perry have a much bigger world status then Nas which the Super Bowl takes in to consideration.

Billboard is not a metric all the time for star power man lol. Especially when most of Nas high record sales came early in his career.

You might not want to admit it but Jay has bigger hits, known more world wide & is a better live performer then Nas to make Super Bowl successful but even in 2025 & beyond I’m not sure if Jay Super Bowl will get good viewership.

Nas is one of the greatest musicians to ever grab a microphone. He can do a SB
Fvck all this mental gymnastics y'all are doing because you want to placate to white people.

The greatest hip hop catalog is Wu Tang Clan. Solo n group included...they can't do a SB either? fvck outta here

 

[MikeStamina]

All y'all should just cut the chase and say middle aged white people will not enjoy a real hip hop SB. Because that's certainly the crowd you're trying to appease.

Nas WU PE Cube have all played stadiums...

Furthermore, we're talking about keeping a crowd engaged for 15 minutes. 15 gotdamn minutes

 

[spliz]

All y'all should just cut the chase and say middle aged white people will not enjoy a real hip hop SB. Because that's certainly the crowd you're trying to appease.

Nas WU PE Cube have all played stadiums...

Furthermore, we're talking about keeping a crowd engaged for 15 minutes. 15 gotdamn minutes

I Can, One Mic, Made You Look Remix, If I Ruled The World by themselves would rock a Super Bowl if these nikkas tryna tell me that shyt Kendrick was doing was rocking the Super Bowl. What I’m doing right now is proving how intellectually dishonest people have been about that Kendrick performance for the last year.

 

[spliz]

Never in my life associated Esco with the Superbowl lol, that one time he showed up at an MTV AWARDS with Murda Inc already felt akward as hell.

I think I, being the Stan y'all know I am, would hate it. I didn't watch a second of Clipse at the Vatican because I don't need my HipHop to be validated by those pedophiles or the fukking Superbowl crowd (y'all know).

That said I loved the Dre and Dot bowls, but Westcoast music kind of lends itself more to these kind of venues. Nas shyt is for my soul even though I agree with @spliz that we shouldn't underestimate that Nas has bangers. If KDot can do Peekaboo, Nas could do some of his known shyt. Dot's Superbowl, which I loved, kiiiiiind of gets overrated because of the online viral shyt (which is 99% NLU, Luther and TV Off) - I highly doubt the physical crowd was vibing to some of the other GNX joints (the online crowd for sure was which we saw in the streaming numbers).

This is what I’m saying. It did. shyt when cats like Kai who was actually there said that the crowd noise on the online videos wasn’t how the crowd was in real life outside of Not Like Us and All The Stars. He got attacked with people posting videos of the crowd getting hyped to Not Like Us as if that wasn’t what he said in the first place. If nikkas can at least be honest about that Kendrick performance we have nothing further to talk about. Son didn’t even utilize the whole fukking field in his performance. Didn’t perform damn near any of his hit records. Most of the stadium didn’t get the view that we got from the cameras sitting at home. The people AT the Super Bowl didn’t enjoy that shyt as much as the people sitting at home did.

 

[Figaro]

Nas is one of the greatest musicians to ever grab a microphone. He can do a SB
Fvck all this mental gymnastics y'all are doing because you want to placate to white people.

The greatest hip hop catalog is Wu Tang Clan. Solo n group included...they can't do a SB either? fvck outta here

I never said Nas can’t do a Super Bowl lol I just said in 2025 & beyond it won’t gain viewership numbers that Super Bowl want & that’s the reality of it.

The glazing y’all do is crazy sometimes

 

[Alexander Wiggin]

Yeah I love Nas to the death but even if he has songs that can ring for a super bowl he's not that type of performer. You have to put on a show with theme and scenery. This is not Nas lane. Kendrick put on a real theatric show when he tour overseas and he had song of the year.
And usually artist that perform in the super bowl are charts and billboard juggernauts.
Nas can do it only if he's co headlining with some over big heavyweights

 

[Primetime21]

That's your opinion.
You're also calling it a "barometer"
The interviewer didn't frame it in that fashion

A few years ago the SB was not even an option for rappers. It's only right the biggest artists in the genre...past n present...might get asked how they feel about it

So if Nas would've said he'd love to do it, your response will be what??? He doesn't have the catalog to?

Aight Mike you got it lol.

 

[Pop123]

It's not...not close...and it's an amazing album. That just goes to show how nearly perfect Illmatic is, a real masterpiece. Over the years tho, I've at least come to a point where I can see where this loud minority of folk are coming from with it, Nas flow/lyricism advanced in terms of the tecnhicalities and shhit, I'll give yall that. Musically though (this is music, btw)...coupled with the era and the rhymes and the feel, etc... Illmatic is probably the greatest hip hop album ever.

Speaking as a stan tho, I do like that IWW gets all this love...because there's some who try to act like Nas only classic is "Illmatic"...people saying IWW is even better is powerful, and repels the dikkheads on that tip, lol.

 

[spliz]

It's not...not close...and it's an amazing album. That just goes to show how nearly perfect Illmatic is, a real masterpiece. Over the years tho, I've at least come to a point where I can see where this loud minority of folk are coming from with it, Nas flow/lyricism advanced in terms of the tecnhicalities and shhit, I'll give yall that. Musically though (this is music, btw)...coupled with the era and the rhymes and the feel, etc... Illmatic is probably the greatest hip hop album ever.

Speaking as a stan tho, I do like that IWW gets all this love...because there's some who try to act like Nas only classic is "Illmatic"...people saying IWW is even better is powerful, and repels the dikkheads on that tip, lol.

I mean bro. When u got G Rap. Nas’ own brother. Nas’ own daughter. Yara Shahidi’s mom. Joe Budden, Lupe Fiasco, Jadakiss, Royce Da 59, Havoc, basically the entire Slaughterhouse keep it real, Fabolous, Cordae, etc etc. One thing these people have in common is they are elite emcees. It’s literally the album that made most people fall in love with Nas. Alotta nikkas WENT BACK to Illmatic. History is being completely rewritten for IWW and it’s annoying cause I remember the streets back then. shyt was bumping out every whip. I know young nikkas in real life like 27 years old that feel IWW is the greatest rap album ever made. Just look at reactions to the album online to people just hearing both. ALOTTA people either prefer IWW or feel it’s ever bit as good as Illmatic. This isn’t just some small group of people we talking about. Jungle had to damn near bark on an interviewer cause he said he likes IWW more than Illmatic and the interviewer said “oh ur one of those guys..” and the nikka Jungle was like “wtf u mean by that?..I was there for both albums creation..”

 

[Ziggiy]

I mean bro. When u got G Rap. Nas’ own brother. Nas’ own daughter. Yara Shahidi’s mom. Joe Budden, Lupe Fiasco, Jadakiss, Royce Da 59, Havoc, basically the entire Slaughterhouse keep it real, Fabolous, Cordae, etc etc. One thing these people have in common is they are elite emcees. It’s literally the album that made most people fall in love with Nas. Alotta nikkas WENT BACK to Illmatic. History is being completely rewritten for IWW and it’s annoying cause I remember the streets back then. shyt was bumping out every whip. I know young nikkas in real life like 27 years old that feel IWW is the greatest rap album ever made. Just look at reactions to the album online to people just hearing both. ALOTTA people either prefer IWW or feel it’s ever bit as good as Illmatic. This isn’t just some small group of people we talking about. Jungle had to damn near bark on an interviewer cause he said he likes IWW more than Illmatic and the interviewer said “oh ur one of those guys..” and the nikka Jungle was like “wtf u mean by that?..I was there for both albums creation..”

I actually think history is being CORRECTED in IWW’s favor in real time. Retrospective reviews have put in the classic territory and bloggers and reactionists absolutely love it. Rolling Stone went from giving it a 2 star review in 96 to giving it four stars and including it on their list of 500 Greatest Rap Albums.

Nowadays nobody really bats an eye when you call It Was Written a classic. Its a perfect example of an album thats grown in appreciation over time.

I wish Nas gave a little more love & attention to It Was Written himself

 

[IllmaticDelta]

I actually think history is being CORRECTED in IWW’s favor in real time. Retrospective reviews have put in the classic territory and bloggers and reactionists absolutely love it. Rolling Stone went from giving it a 2 star review in 96 to giving it four stars and including it on their list of 500 Greatest Rap Albums.

Nowadays nobody really bats an eye when you call It Was Written a classic. Its a perfect example of an album thats grown in appreciation over time.

I wish Nas gave a little more love & attention to It Was Written himself

facts!