Fans of Hip-Hop in the 2000s probably wouldn’t believe that the bubble-gum rapper of with the single, “I Can,” in 2003 used to be a hard-edged East Coast Rapper. Nas was born Nasir Jones in the Queensbridge Projects of New York City. Being the son of jazz musician, Olu Dara, the rapper grew up listening and appreciating music. Nas definitely had a hard childhood. By the time he was in eight grade, the rapper dropped out of school. Although he was not in school, he made sure to read and work on his vocabulary. His high literacy rate would later make him very famous. In 1991, Nas met Main Source and was featured on the track, “Live at the Barbeque.” He soon became a respected East Coast street rapper. Main Source was so impressed with Nas that he contacted the rapper one more and asked if he could write something to be put on the Zebrahead Soundtrack. Nas created the song, “Halftime.” Main Source liked “Halftime” so much that he made it the lead track on the album. Nas was soon approached by Columbia Records; in which he signed to.
Nas’s debut album, Illmatic, was released in April 1994. The album received immediate attention and critical acclaim. In fact, it eventually went Gold. Today it is still considered to be a Hip-Hop classic. In the album, the rapper analyzed New York City and its citizens. In 1996, Nas released his sophomore album entitled It Was Written. The album was more pop-oriented than Illmatic. The songs, “Street Dream” and “If I Ruled the World (Imagine That),” did very well. The two songs were taken from 1980s pop songs; the Eurythmics “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of these) and Kurtis Blow’s “If I Ruled the World.” Although Nas was receiving much attention from MTV, he was beginning to lose credibility on the streets. The album was produced by Dr. Dre, DJ Premier, and Mobb deep. It featured artists such as Lauryn Hill from The Fugees and Jo from Joeci. Although the album was slightly criticized for being soft, Nas did explore themes such as; black-on-black crime, inner city violence, racial prejudice, urban politics, and social pressures.
In 1998, Nas co-starred with fellow rapper, DMX in the Hype William’s directed film, Belly. The rapper was also featured on the film’s soundtrack. That same year, Nas created a group he called The Firm. The group consisted of Foxy brown, AZ, Nature, Dr. Dre, and The Trackmasterz. In 199, Nas released the album entitled I Am. That same year, he also released Nastradamus. In 2000, Nas compiled an album called QB Finest, which consisted of all the rappers from his home area of the Queensbridge Projects. By 2001, the rapper who had once owned the rap industry; lost his career. He suffered personal problems throughout that year; his mother was diagnosed with cancer, and his girlfriend cheated on him. Nas’s career dropped even more when longtime rival, and Hip-Hop power house Jay-Z publicly attacked Nas on his hit album, Blueprint. On the lead track, “Takeover,” Jay-Z called Nas a has-been and said he had not had a single hit since his album, Illmatic. Jay-Z also made references to Nas’s girlfriend being unfaithful.
In 2001, Nas released Stillmatic; a direct reference to his hit album almost a decade earlier. On the track, “Ether,” Nas referred to Jay-Z. The single, “Get Ur Self A…” was Nas’s most aggressive track to date. The music video for “One Mic” was heavily supported by MTV. In 2002, Nas was featured on song bird, brandy’s album on the track “What About Us?” He also sang on Jennifer Lopez’s single, “I’m Gonna Be Alright.” The rapper also accompanied Ja Rule on the track “The Pledge.” Later that year, Nas received publicity when he was a no-show at the radio powerhouse, Hot 97’s concert, Summer Jam.
In 2002, Nas released God’s Son. The album contained the singles, “Thugz Mansion,” “Made You Look,” and “I Can.” The single, “I Can” had lots of airplay and the video was nominated for a 2003 MTV Video Award.
Bio written by: bandhunt |
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