Nas - Illmatic

The Definitive Hip-Hop album

What can I say that countless other reviewers have not? If you consider yourself a true Hip Hop fan, you must have this album. Since I was only six when this album came out, I was introduced to rap by Eminem in High School. All I knew was what I heard on the radio until I started buying CDs. At one point I was in the music store and found two CDs at a good price: Illmatic - the platinum version and Get Rich or Die Tryin. I had to make a choice between the two. I made the right choice and picked Illmatic based on good reviews I read here on Amazon. At first I did not get the hype, it all went straight over my head. I listened to it again and again until something inside me clicked. Now, this is my favourite album. Here's what I thought of each track:

-1. THE GENESIS 3/5 - Great intro, the beat is grimy and gets me amped up for the rest of the album. Listen closely for Nas's verse from LIVE AT THE BARBEQUE in the background "Street's disciple, my raps are trifle / I shoot slugs from my brain just like a rifle"(the only reason it gets 3/5 is because its an intro as apposed to a full song)

-2. N.Y. STATE OF MIND 5/5 - My personal favourite. Some of DJ Premier's best work is on this album. The beat is dark and gritty. There is an acute sense of a young man trapped in a dangerous world. It is tense and dark. A Rakim sample for the hook completes it. "Heard a few chicks scream my arm shook, couldn't look / Gave another squeeze heard it click yo, my s*** is stuck"

-3. LIFE'S A B**** 5/5 - A killer debut verse from Brooklyn rapper AZ, though both emcees shine immensely. Both feel like they're trapped in the system. Nas has smoother flow, but I consider this song to belong to AZ. "Visualizin the realism of life and actuality / F*** who's the baddest a person's status depends on salary". Minimalist production from L.E.S. is overshadowed by the more experienced producers, love Olu Dara's trumpet solo at the end.

-4. THE WORLD IS YOURS 5/5 - Some of the most poetic work from Nas. The idea that one can take they're life into their own hands is a startling contrast to the previous track. Pete Rock's production is jazzy and I like the hook he drops. "I keep fallin, but never fallin six feet deep / I'm out for presidents to represent me".

-5. HALFTIME 3.5/5 - An appropriate track for the middle of the album. It was Nas's first single, released on the soundtrack for Zebrahead two years earlier. It is probably the weakest track on the CD, more or less because Nas is all over the place. However, it features some very clever wordplay throughout and interesting production from the Large Professor that sounds like a matching of jazz and jingle bells. "I'm max like cassettes, I flex like sex / In your stereo sets, Nas will catch wreck".

-6. MEMORY LANE 5/5 - You can picture Nas sitting on the stoop writing hits lyrics, he paints pictures with his lyrics. Of course, Primo's supreme production helps. "Poetry, that's a part of me, retardedly bop / I drop the ancient manifested hip-hop, straight off the block".

-7. ONE LOVE 5/5 - A conceptual track in which Nas writes his friends that are incarcerated in San Quentin then he schools a youngster headed down the road to prison. Q-Tip's production is spot on, the echoing sounds evoke images of jail cells. "Shorty's laugh was cold blooded as he spoke so foul / only twelve trying to tell me that he liked my style".

-8. ONE TIME 4 YOUR MIND 4/5 - Along with Large Professor's beat, Nas is laid back plus his flow is spot on. This one doesn't pop out as much as the other tracks though. "Ya'll n****s was born , I shot my way out my Mom Dukes".

-9. REPRESENT 5/5 - After chillin' to the previous track, get back up again for this high energy beat from Premier. I love bumping this on in the car. Nas is on point, representing the QB. "This n**** raps with a razor, keep it under my tongue / The school drop-out, never liked the s*** from day one".

-10. IT AIN'T HARD TO TELL 4.5/5 - Nas lyrically kills this track. I did not give it 5/5 due to the lack of direction in this track that was present in the others. He averages about 4 rhymes every 2 lines. Some nice jazzy production from the Professor. "Inhale from the L, school a fool well, you feel it like braille / It ain't hard to tell, I kick the skill like Shaquille holds a bill / Vocabulary spills I'm Ill".


The Platinum version has 4 remixes and a couple bonus tracks. I would recommend buying it if you can get it for the same price as the original or close:

-1. LIFE'S A B**** (REMIX) 4.5/5 - The vocals come through a bit clearer in all the remixes. Rockwilder's beat is rather pop sounding, but seem to work fine. I still prefer the original.

-2. THE WORLD IS YOURS (REMIX) 5/5 - Missing a bit of hook that I'm fond of, but Vibesmen's piano driven production fits nicely, I think this is the only track I consider on par with the original.

-3. ONE LOVE (REMIX) 4/5 - The clean version, for some reason. Production by Nick "Fury" also sounds very pop that seems to still work with the song due to the contrast with the dark nature of the lyrics. It just does not match up to the original.

-4. IT AIN'T HARD TO TELL (REMIX) 4/5 - Since this is a show of lyricism, the hyped concert sound of this version suits it. Still, I prefer the jazziness of the original. Also interesting to note that he mixes up his verses and uses alternate verses. I am not sure if they are new or previously written.

-5. ON THE REAL 3.5/5 - Pays homage to Illmatic and advertises Streets Disciple. Includes a ten year old verse, and old school sounding production from Marley Marl. Basically Nas tried to recreate what he did on Illmatic. Looking closely, everything seems on par, yet all together it doesn't hold together well. "To my seed, may I lead you into no greed or evil / In the categories of stories I breed my sequel". I don't like the hook either.

-6. STAR WARS 5/5 - Recent track. Very different production from Large Professor. Kind of a dark technological sound. It doesn't attempt to sound like Illmatic. Nas is more or less disgusted with hip-hop super stardom. "It's shockin - you thinkin "naw it's just rhymin"
But all this time it's like organized crimin".

That pretty much covers everything. Give me feedback if you agree or disagree. February 27, 2008

Legendary Album.....

This is a must have for any ANYYYY true rap/hiphop fan...this is a legendary album while in my eyes not his best album its definatly a must have...its just you must own it...its one of them things that you gotta have...its beats its flows its down in the ghetto feel... September 26, 2007

Revival of the Great Album of All Time

Illmatic is what you would call the holy scriptures of Hip Hop. It's perfect in every way possible. The 10 tracks on it is more than enough to fill your ears with enlightenment. Tracks like "N.Y. State of Mind", "The World is Yours" and "It Ain't Hard To Tell" drive you into a world where only your mind can go and feel like it's in paradise. You may think I'm exaggerating or I'm giving it too much praise but it's that good for any person that enjoys listen to real Hip Hop. It's no doubt in my mind that this desrves a full 5 stars. The second disc is more of a extra track list since the reason I bought this album was for much greater quality compared to it's original CD release. More bass for the car. September 24, 2007

I rap for listeners, blunt heads, fly ladies and prisoners..........

Vintage Nas + Instant Classic. What more can be said about Illmatic?
Here's my 2 cents. I think what separates Illmatic from a lot of the other great classics is that the album flows seamlessly together, very cohesive as if it's one well written movie or book. It's very identical to Eric B. & Rakim's "Paid in Full" in that respect. My favorites are Memory Lane, World is Yours, Represent, It aint hard to tell, One Love, New York State of Mind, Life's a B. Nas set a precedent for himself with Illmatic. Face it- He will have more hit singles, but he has yet been able to recapture fully the glory of Illmatic's cohesive-ness. I hope so because that's what the world wants to hear from him. Tell us how the little boy from the Queensbridge projects sees the world now that he's in his early 30's and capture that. Talk about life's past hurdles and future foreseen ones as it relates to the 70/80's kids. Trim the fat and filler tracks and then we will have the real sequel to Illmatic.
May 1, 2007

The illest album

This is definitely the purest, most genre defining album ever released in hip hop. The MC work of Nas is unbelievable. His songs are well written and his clever flow and rhyming skill as well as the superb content of the songs make you emotionally connect to the tunes. Every song is ridiculously good. One of the greatest albums ever released in music bar none! March 26, 2007

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