Category: Rap
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God’s Son occupies an intriguing space in Nas’s catalog. After two stellar releases recalibrated his standing among his peers, album #6 functioned as something of a soft reboot; a chance for… more ›
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A compilation of unreleased material is usually meant for the most diehard fans; those for whom the hit singles and studio albums simply won’t cut it. But The Lost Tapes… more ›
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Sometimes things just line up perfectly. Jay-Z’s critically acclaimed fifth album, The Blueprint, was fresh in everyone’s mind, thanks in part to the song “Takeover,” which mercilessly took aim at… more ›
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The years between 1996’s It Was Written and 1999’s I Am… were filled with their share of disappointments. The Firm’s collaborative album was a flop, and Nas’s ambitious comeback album… more ›
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The benefit of hindsight makes I Am… an interesting album to revisit. Initially meant to be an ambitious conceptual double album, many of the songs were leaked to the internet,… more ›
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Starting with the understanding that recreating Illmatic was always going to be a tall order, the criticisms of Nas’s sophomore album, It Was Written, have always felt a bit nitpicky.… more ›
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The common thought is that Nas’s and Jay-Z’s stellar debut albums set them on parallel tracks at the start of their careers. But the truth is a bit more nuanced… more ›
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Album releases (particularly rap) don’t really feel important anymore. An album comes out, we listen, and even when it’s really good, we move on pretty quickly. That wasn’t the case… more ›
