An incredible song from one of the ’90s greatest albums
Artist, album and year: Nas, Illmatic, 1994
Why is it a classic? : Very few pieces of work have the ability to re-energise and revive certain musical genres but this is what Nas did with the Illmatic.
His sublime lyrics , inspired production values and inner-city narrative was like a beat-driven defibrillator that was applied to the heart of East Coast hiphop at a time when it was in danger of falling behind rival acts like 2Pac, Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg.
Illmatic was a deeply personal record as Nas drew from his own experiences of growing up in New York’s projects with gang rivalries, urban poverty and the frustration incurred from living in a decaying and violent environment all featuring heavily.
You get the impression that music was the rappers only way out from a perilous future and this theme is prevalent on this track especially.
This being said, this hostile environment also helped to shape the man as Nas effortlessly switches his lyrical focus from the cynical to the optimistic, between angry and calm or switch gears from reflecting on a dark past to a future that’s filled with possibilities.
On a pure production side of things, the rappers influences shine through in his choice of samples as vintage funk, soul, and jazz all feature prominently.
Simply put, this is one of the purest hip-hop albums that you’ll ever hear and the themes on this track alone are incredible.
Materialism, drug culture, wasted youth, fear of prison, immortality, salvation in music, crime, poverty and lost friends are all here.
This song is also rarity on this stunning album because Nas’ delivery is probably second best when compared to the guest MC, AZ who absolutely owns this one.
Did You Know? : Nas’s own father, legendary jazz player Olu Dara, plays the trumpet as the music fades out.
The lyrical hook: “Visualizing the realism of life in actuality, Fuck who’s the baddest, a person’s status depends on salary, And my mentality is money-orientated, I’m destined to live the dream for all my peeps who never made it”
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