Nas – Illmatic

This one was pretty easy as I already owned this album and listened to it extensively during my long commutes in the late 90’s.

There’s a reason Nas is hailed as one of the GOATS the flows are immaculate his rapping style is so clean and smooth and the tracks he’s rapping over are tight. His lyrics on this album are so dense with a distinct storytelling vibe talking about drugs, guns, and the life on the streets.

His breath control on extended verses is amazing and I found myself referring to the lyrics for the songs due to how fast they were going by.

One of my favorite tracks is halftime – it’s got a funky groove and the words go hard (even the few.. Problematic verse) – typical of 90’s hip-hop the album is full of references to money,  violence and police brutality and NAS is unafraid to lay down some tracks calling this out. I also like how he goes back in his history with sine introspective lyrics showing how he started, his struggles, and how he got to where he is now.

How this album makes me feel:  Cruising home from work on a hot summer day, the NAS tape (yes, tape) in the player and cranking out of my shitbox car. No worries in the world other than getting that paycheck and figuring out where I’m gonna spend it that weekend.

5/5 – I love this album. I know I’m biased for NY rappers but I can listen to this album over and over and never get tired of it.