Whats Buzzing in the Streets – Page 87

Unsigned Hype: Poet Deep

Delivery, flow, bars, hunger, ambition, drive, and confidence is something that I definitely look for when I come across dope talent. Sometimes, dope talent comes to me on its own and that’s even better. When I got the opportunity to listen to a guy, whose a dope indie artist named Poet Deep from Baltimore, everything that I look for in talent was definitely heard through this guy. Along with everything this guy has in voice and sound, there’s also self consciousness, there’s aggression, there’s wanting and fighting for a change, a revolution, this is what hip hop is all about. Of course we need our balance of the positive and negatives but there is no balance today. We need more Poet Deep’s if you ask me. This guy is not all about the glitz and glamour, this guy is the real deal. Understand that we need more powerful voices to uplift and empower, more true talent, more positive voices in the game. People only pay attention to mainstream positivity, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing because positive is positive but we need to show more love and support to our unsigned hype as well. Another thing about this guy that’s incredible is his wordplay. The way he uses words in his delivery makes you get lost for a second. You can definitely tell what he’s trying to invoke through his music but the delivery is so dope, you get lost trying to figure out how he delivers; it’s almost like a magic trick. Another plus, he’s keeps your interest. One video, two videos, three videos, non stop dope sounds of Poet Deep. Some deep shit to keep you in tune with him and it almost hypnotizes you to understand what he’s trying to do. Anybody that can start all of these things in me when I listen to them is truly a real artist and I’m definitely a new fan of Poet Deep. You can check him out at iampoetdeep.com and follow this guy on Instagram @iampoetdeep. To not keep up with this guy, to not understand the message, to not feel what he is saying is definitely a dishonor to yourself and him. Fight the power, get into some dope and deep poetry with Poet Deep.

The Legacy of Usher Raymond

When this man’s music is up for discussion, a lot of people seem to think that “My Way” was his first. His first joint was on the “Poetic Justice” soundtrack called “Called Me a Mack.” The next year after that Usher released his first debut album with joints like “Can U Get Wit It”, “The Many Ways” and my all time favorite joint “Think of You.” There is absolutely no better Usher joint than that one, I don’t care what anybody says. That first album of his was extremely underrated. I’ve heard people say it wasn’t a very good album but to me it’s better than his shit after the “Looking 4 Myself” album. He went too pop for me. Besides the singles, “I’ll Make It Right”, “Crazy”, “I’ll Show You Love”, “Whispers”, “You Took My Heart” and “Smile Again” were all bangers too. People need to listen to the first album again. His next joint, 1997’s “My Way” is the Usher everybody started to know, the Usher everybody thinks is his first. LOL! Another banging album from Usher. This is the Usher that inspired me fashionably. He was rocking ski masks, leather outfits, shiny jackets and the infamous “U” chain. That “U” chain is his trademark, it’s like the “S” on Superman’s chest. This is the Usher that got him more recognition as an artist. That “My Way” joint was ill too. The video was more iller. “Bedtime” and “I Will” made me think the girls I had crushes on growing up. This was when we had true male R&B singers. They sung about loving their women. The “Live” album is one of my favorite live albums in music but I wish he performed more songs from his first album. “8701” showed a more mature Usher. This was the “Usher & Chilli” era. Usher was older, much wiser, his material was more serious but it definitely prepared us for his album of all time. That album happened to be 2004’s “Confessions.” Man listen, this album is in my top 10 R&B albums of all time list. This is Usher’s best work til this day. I don’t give a fuck what nobody say. The entire album from beginning to end is a banger. No fucking skips, but replays, rewinds, volume all the way up and singing along to Usher. My favorite joint is “Seduction.” It’s my favorite slow joint from Usher. The chorus and harmonies were smooth as silk but that’s regular Usher style. 4 years later, we got “Here I Stand.” This is the beginning of the “pop” Usher that I personally don’t like but this was definitely a dope album though. “Trading Places” is the best joint along with “Best Thing” featuring Jay-Z. After “Here I Stand”, I never listened to Usher’s entire albums just the singles. The singles are dope, he’s still doing his thing but the spark is gone. Too many club bangers for the younger crowd and not enough grown folk music like he used to deliver. It’s rare to hear that from him now but I’m still a Usher fan. Of all the birthdays in October, I’m always amped about Usher’s because he’s definitely my biggest inspiration as a singer, besides Ricky Bell from New Edition. Usher is the singer I always wanted to be but with a hip hop twist. He’s the ultimate ladies man with almost 25 years under his belt and albums and bangers for days. He’s the Prince of R&B to me. There’s no one like Usher Raymond IV. Yeaaahhhhh man!

The Princess of Hip Hop & R&B: The Wonderful World of Ashanti

Before we seen her face, we heard her singing hooks on joints for Big Pun, Fat Joe, and later on, her label mate Ja Rule. Ashanti Douglas has proved herself to be one of R&B’s most greatest artists of her time. She blew up in the early 2000’s for being the girl who was singing on hooks only. Ashanti’s voice is almost similar to Aaliyah’s, she’s got that soft, sweet, sultry Soprano thing going on but her style musically was similar to Mary J. Blige’s, it is Hip hop soul. Ashanti reminds you of that nice girl in the hood who was a hip hop fan but she could sing her ass off. You’ll see her walking down the street in a fresh pair of Air Force Ones, tight jeans, chewing gum, rocking a varsity jacket and big hoop earrings just without the “ratchet”, not calling those kinds girls ratchet though. LOL! She’s the one all the hardcore guys call to sing hooks on their songs and she does it well with the songwriting as well which is why she was nicknamed “The Princess of Hip Hop and R&B.” A lot of artists both male and female have been on the “hip hop soul” movement since “What’s the 411?” but what makes Ashanti a little more different than the rest is her being a fan of hip hop. She’s not just a singer on hip hop tracks, she embraces hip hop in her attitude and her little bop in her videos. I’ve always been a fan of Ashanti since 2002 when she dropped her debut single “Foolish”, singing over The Notorious B.I.G.’s 1995 remix single “One More Chance” and DeBarge’s 1983 single “Stay With Me.” I remember when she first came out like it was yesterday because I was in the second grade, I was 8 years old and “Foolish” was on BET every five minutes and I remember when the video came out with Terrance Howard and it made number 1 on BET’s 106 & Park Top 10 Live list. I do miss those days. The days of a 90’s born-00’s raised kid. Her next joint “Happy”, turned out to be my all time favorite joint by her. The chorus and hook is the best part of the song. The beat is hard with this happy and catchy whistling sound and the chorus and hook has this beautiful harmony that’s very mesmerizing and gets you lost into the sound, that’s an effect I usually get from Brandy. Ashanti’s entire self titled debut was banger from beginning to end and then she released “Chapter II”, my favorite album from her. Another smash album under her belt. She put out “Rock Wit U (Awww Baby)”, “Rain On Me” and “Breakup 2 Makeup” and the remixes were bangers too. The hip hop in Ashanti’s music were mostly on the remixes. She had everyone and their momma on those joints. When “Chapter II” came out in the summer of 2003, I was in Virginia at my auntie’s house singing those songs. My cousins and one of their friends didn’t wanna hear me though but I was feeling that album. LMAO! That was around the same time Beyoncé dropped “Dangerously In Love” and “Baby Boy” was everywhere too; that and “Rock Wit U.” The joint “Feel So Good” was the best one to me because it came from Black Moon’s “I Gotcha Opin (Remix)”, a certified banger. That one should’ve been a hit from the album to me. Her next joint “Concrete Rose” was another banger. Ashanti was no joke in her prime. She kept coming back to back with albums and bangers but this album had a couple of joints I skipped more than the first two. She blew me away with “Don’t Let Them.” That joint came straight from Raekwon’s “Heaven & Hell.” Another banger from that album is “Love Again” but after that she came out with “The Declaration” but her shit wasn’t the same. She went full R&B now, which is cool but that spark she used to give me with her first three was gone because she wasn’t down with Irv Gotti and the Inc. anymore. She still as beautiful as usual but she’s one gem that people don’t appreciate enough to me. She’s no Mary J., no Brandy, no Aaliyah, Monica, Janet Jackson but she was dope in her own right. I’ll always appreciate Ashanti aka The Princess of Hip Hop and R&B.

Lyte As a Rock: Happy Birthday MC Lyte

Lana Michelle Moorer aka MC Lyte is one of hip hop’s greatest MC’s of all time. I hate when people say “female rapper”, so I’m just gonna say “women in hip hop” instead. When it comes to women in hip hop, MC Lyte has definitely been the catalyst and inspiration to other women to come into the game and do it just as well and gain respect for it, especially when hip hop is mostly a male dominated field. MC Lyte along with Queen Latifah, Roxanne Shanté, Sha-Rock (from the group Funky Four Plus One More), Salt-N-Pepa, and Monie Love, just to name a few, are some of hip hop’s earlier women in the game and these ladies definitely held their own. MC Lyte was the first woman in hip hop to actually release a whole album, which was 1988’s “Lyte As a Rock.” After the success of her debut, Lyte kept coming with albums and more hits making her one of hip hop’s most respected woman in the game and a lot of people consider her their first choice when it comes to women in hip hop. Joints like “Cha Cha Cha”, “I Cram 2 Understand U (Sam)”, “Paper Thin”, “Poor Georgie”, “Ice Cream Dream” (from the Mo’ Money soundtrack), “Ruffneck”, “Keep On, Keepin’ On”, “Cold Rock a Party” and more. Lyte is the fly b-girl from Brooklyn with the attitude that caught your attention and kept your attention too. She was hard on the mic and her rhymes were just as tough as the guys on the mic, especially 1993’s “Ruffneck.” She went the hardest on the joint to me. She was describing the hard hood guy hanging on street corners, hustling with a bad attitude with the hardest voice you’ve ever heard Lyte spit. Lyte had bangers, she don’t have too many joints that was wack to me, almost all her shit was dope. She’ll always go down in history as the one of the realest, dead or alive.

The King of New Jack Swing: Happy Birthday Teddy Riley

They call him the King of New Jack Swing. He’s the man behind the legendary hip hop and R&B groups like Guy, Wreckx-N-Effect, and BLACKstreet, he helped provided sounds for Michael Jackson’s 1991 album “Dangerous”, Bobby Brown’s 1988 album “Don’t Be Cruel” and Queen Pen’s 1997 album “My Melody.” He did a lot joints for others artists including MC Hammer, Mary J. Blige, Doug E. Fresh, SWV, Kool Moe Dee and a whole lot more of other hip hop, R&B and new jack swing artists. This man is my all time favorite producer, for he is responsible for a lot of my favorite joints. His name is Teddy Riley. It was 1985 when Teddy produced his first joint to reach the Billboard Top 100 charts, Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick’s “The Show” and then two years later, the R&B group Guy was born. The group started off with Teddy, Timmy Gatling and Aaron Hall who pioneered the new jack swing style and movement. With only three albums underneath their belt, they had some of the greatest joints between the first two albums. “New Jack Swing” of course, “Teddy’s Jam”, “Groove Me”, “I Like”, “Yearning For Your Love”, and “My Fantasy”, which is a joint not to many can remember unless you play it like “Ohhhh snap! I forgot about this one. This is my shit!” LOL! To those that never understood what exactly was the sound of New Jack Swing, it was basically hip hop production, R&B vocals, pop infused with synthesizers and heavy bass with instrument sounds. It was the early combination of hip hop and R&B until Hip hop soul came along in the early 90’s, thanks to Mary J. Blige and Jodeci. In 1989 Teddy Riley began working with hip hop group Wreckx-N-Effect. Their main two singles were “New Jack Swing”, a song that celebrates the genre and of course partying with a numerous amount of cameo appearances in the music video and in 1992, their next biggest joint, “Rump Shaker.” In the early 90’s, the new jack swing movement and sound was slowly coming to an end. I would say around 1993/1994, the industry was taken over by a new popular sound called “Hip hop sound.” Hip hop soul was more straightforward and more street. It was like church choirs meet the street corner hustlers. This sound was strictly R&B singing over hardcore hip hop production and it is my favorite sound. Teddy didn’t miss a beat and he still put out bangers even with the new sound at the time. He did Michael Jackson’s 1991 album “Dangerous”, he did the remix to Mary J. Blige’s 1994 single “My Love” featuring the late great Heavy D, another artists part of the new jack swing movement, and then came along BLACKstreet, who is one of my all time favorite male groups. Their first two albums, the self titled 1994 album and 1996’s “Another Level”, I ran to death yo. The first joint introduced Chauncey Black and Dave Hollister. Chauncey and Dave had amazing voices but Dave was miles ahead of Chauncey and could hit some of the hardest and coldest notes I’ve ever heard come from an R&B guy. Their definitely influences on me when it comes to singing. The first album was a banger from start to finish. The sound had a west coast vibe but it was a tad bit new jack swing-ish but very, very smooth and R&B on a hip hop tip that makes you nod your head something crazy. Joints like “Baby Be Mine”, “I Like the Way You Work”, “Physical Thing”, “Happy Home”, “Before I Let You Go” man, that shit is a masterpiece. Their second album “Another Level” had the perfect name and it was exactly that but their first joint was more raw and street. “Another Level” had more church vibes but it was still dope. A couple of joints skipped here and there but still a dope body work. This album had the notorious Teddy Riley joint, “No Diggity” featuring Dr. Dre and Queen Pen. Queen Pen is another one of Teddy’s artists. She was incredible on the mic but very underrated. Teddy did her album “My Melody” a year after “Another Level” and “Party Ain’t a Party” took Queen Pen to the top. Her second joint didn’t do so well but she’s still a monster on the mic. BLACKstreet’s third album “Finally”, was an okay album though. I don’t really care too much about it but it was cool. Very R&B all the way and “Girlfriend/Boyfriend” featuring Janet Jackson, Ja Rule and Eve was dope too. I pretty much only celebrate Teddy’s career from 1985 to 1998. That’s when he was in his prime. Album after album, artist after artist, bangers after bangers, Teddy is definitely one of the greatest producers of all time. He’s pretty much the soundtrack and King of my “old soul” life. He provided that sound I love so much and exaggerates it a lot. Those beats of his was perfect to me. His ear is an incredible one and something you never doubt. I always dreamed of someday working with Teddy in the future. Hope I can.

From The Fresh Prince to Hollywood Best: Happy Birthday Will Smith

Who would’ve thought that the same guy from West Philadelphia, born and raised, on the playground was where he spent most of his days at, with the funny and happy raps, on a television sitcom with the illest hip hop gear I have ever seen, side by side with a DJ who goes by the name of DJ Jazzy Jeff, would be one of Hollywood’s most respected actors and married to the beautiful and lovely Jada Pinkett. That man would be known as Will Smith aka The Fresh Prince. When it comes to hip hop fashion, Will have always been an inspiration to me. Besides LL Cool J, Slick Rick, Run-DMC, and Big Daddy Kane, Will was also someone I looked up to fashionably. He literally would wear something that nobody else would or do something else with his clothes that nobody else would do either and that to me was dope. I take fashion lessons from this man. Now the music, that was dope too. As the album titles says “He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper”, Will and Jazz were the perfect hip hop duo. Songs like “Brand New Funk”, “You Saw My Blinker”, “Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble”, “Parents Just Don’t Understand”, and the ultimate Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff classic “Summertime”, these guys are definitely one of the greatest hip hop duos of all time. Now the transition that Will went from the Fresh Prince to Hollywood actor Will Smith was a weird one to me. Throughout the last couple of seasons of “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air”, Will’s style changed drastically. He went from hip hop gear in Doc Martens and Jordans, hat to the back, one sneaker white, one sneaker black, to plain shirt and jeans but still had the Jordans on. Towards the late 90’s all the way til now, Will Smith has been non stop coming out with movies back to back. My top favorites are “Hitch”, “Bad Boys II”, “The Pursuit of Happyness”, and more. I strongly disliked “Ali” though. I didn’t think he was the right person to play Muhammad Ali. It was more like Will Smith a boxer kinda movie, I didn’t get the Ali vibe from it. Wild Wild West was bad too. Just couldn’t get with it and I remember when that movie came out too. I can’t forget about how different his music became too but it was still good. DJ Jazzy Jeff was no longer beside him, and he had joints like “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It” and “Men In Black” with Coko from SWV singing on the hook and chorus. From Fresh Prince to Hollywood big time, Will Smith is definitely one of hip hop’s greatest artists and Hollywood’s greatest actors on the big screen. Definitely an inspiration to me.

The Low End Theory: The 25th Anniversary

2 months ago, “Beats, Rhymes & Life” turned 20, now here we are on September 24th, 2016, and another classic Tribe album has an anniversary. “The Low End Theory”, my favorite ATCQ album turns 25. Before I get into this album track by track, I spent some time on Phife’s Instagram account and it still hurts that he’s not here. It’s surreal, I think about this man everyday. I just wish he was here to see “Beats, Rhymes & Life” turning 20, 2 months ago and now “The Low End Theory”, turning 25. This album is known for it’s jazzy sounds that influenced a lot of other hip hop artists and albums. “Excursions”, the opening track on the album is a head nodder and Q-Tip rips this joint. The next joint “Buggin’ Out”, is the joint you hear at the end of the “Scenario” music video and this time Phife is who we hear first and then Tip comes in afterwards. It’s the classic yin and yang thing that the fellas do in their music. “Rap Promoter” has a beat that knocks a little bit more harder than the first two joints on the album and bit more bass too. The next joint “Butter” is one of my all time favorite Tribe joints. This song always plays in my head out of all the Tribe joints there are and it’s my favorite song to listen to when I’m on the train just cruising on my way downtown doing what I usually do, shopping or going to visit family in Queens. Haha, how ironic, Queens is the hometown of Tribe, except Ali Shaheed, he’s from Bed-Stuy. Just like hook goes the joint is strictly BUTTER. “Not no Parkay, not no margarine but strictly butter baby!” The next joint “Verses From the Abstract” is a smooth joint from the Abstract himself. It has a cypher kinda style where a couple of guys come together randomly on the sidewalks and just nod their heads to a dope beat like this joint and do their thing. “Show Business” is another favorite joint of mine on this album. It’s a catchy joint about having the guts and courage to deal with dealing with the rap industry, questioning those who are willing and dedicated to do this. “Vibes and Stuff” has the perfect title. It’s just vibes and stuff. Dope smooth beat and a head nod. “The Infamous Date Rape”, a song that touches on the subject of date rape. An important topic should be discussed more so that people understand what does it mean when someone says NO! The next joint “Check the Rhime”, the first single released from this album and of course a classic. I loved how the video had everyone from the neighborhood Kickin’ it with Tribe. By the way, the ATCQ mural on Linden Boulevard is the exact same place where the video for this joint took place 25 years ago. I’m just glad I was there. Word. “Everything Is Fair” is one of those Tribe joints where they obviously use a sample that takes over the entire the song. This joint coulda been an instrumental and it would still work. “Jazz (We’ve Got)”, awwww maannnn! This is my all time favorite Tribe joint. I am obsessed with this joint all the way yo! Everything was perfect about this joint. The beat, the jazzy horns sounds, Tip, Phife, the simple rhythmic hook “We’ve got the jazz, we’ve got the jazz.” My favorite part on this joint is the beginning of Phife’s part when he uses his Trinidadian accent and goes “Competition dem Phifer come sideway, but competition dey mus me come straightway.” I lose it at that part all the time. “Skypager” was cool. The beat is dope but that’s pretty much it. It was more like an interlude or a short skit to me. “What?”…… The perfect title for it. Didn’t like this joint and of course the album ends with “Scenario.” Another classic Tribe joint with the help from Leaders of the New School, Busta Rhymes original rap group. It was Busta, Charlie Brown, Cut Monitor Milo and Dinco D. The video was perfect for the song too. It was just as hype as the song. Another hip hop classic right here, from beginning to end. This album is always up for debate with “Midnight Marauders” amongst hip hop and Tribe fans about which is Tribe’s better album and whose is what favorite. Once again, much love and peace to my man Phife Dawg. Rest in peace King.

The Man Behind So So Def: Happy Birthday Jermaine Dupri

I consider him to be the Russell Simmons of the South. He’s the man behind some of the biggest hits of Usher, Mariah Carey, Monica, Xscape, TLC, Bow Wow, Jagged Edge and even Da Brat and Kris Kross, just to name a few. He goes by the name of Jermaine Dupri. If you’re a true hip hop fan, you should remember seeing 12 year old JD dancing background for the legendary hip hop group, Whodini, in their music video for “Freaks Come Out At Night.” Homeboy was rocking a serious jheri curl and leather jacket, with those big eyeballs of his directly in the camera as he popped and locked, straight 80’s style. LOL! But let’s fast forward a bit to the 1993. It was the year 1993 when JD launched the legendary record label, aka So So Def but it was in 1990 and 1992 when he first produced for a group named Silk Tymes Leather and Kris Kross. History books say that JD discovered Kris Kross at a local mall and then the rest in history. In 1993, he also discovered Xscape, signed them and their debut album “Hummin’ Comin’ At Cha” was released. Then on an appearance on Yo! MTV Raps, he met Da Brat through Kris Kross, signed her as well and “Funkdafied” was born. Throughout the 90’s, JD started working with other artists like Mariah Carey. He did “Always Be My Baby” and its remixed version featuring Da Brat, he also did “Not Tonight” for Lil’ Kim on her “Hardcore” album, and in 1997 he helped launched Usher’s career with the album “My Way.” A lot of people think that’s Usher’s first joint but he had an album in 1994 that was self titled and super underrated in my opinion. Also in 1997, he remixed “Everything” for Mary J. Blige with the classic “My Name Is D-Nice” beat and y’all know how Mary does it, simply raw and smooth over that joint. Rocking it like she was a rapper and even had this cat named Roc on the joint. In 1998, he met Bow Wow, who was known then as Lil’ Bow Wow. The greatest work done by JD to me is Usher’s 2004 album “Confessions”, which in my opinion is Usher’s best album, along with Mariah Carey’s 2005 comeback album “The Emancipation of Mimi.” There’s a long list of hits done by Jermaine Dupri that’s too much to think about. Hands down one of hip hop’s greatest producers of all time and definitely one from the South as well. He’s the reason why I like southern R&B better than southern rap. In his own words in almost everything he does, “Y’all Know What This Is! So… So…. DEF!”

Live At the BHMC: Bronx Rising!

True hip hop events that celebrate hip hop culture always makes me feel at home. These events make me feel like my world is complete and that I don’t need anything or anybody else. Hip hop events here in the Bronx makes me feel like there is hope for a better life with my own people, both my African and Hispanic people. There’s a sense of community, love, peace, prosperity, understanding, respect, we have fun together, we laugh, we shake hands, we hug, we meet each other and make new friends, we take pictures and that’s what the true spirit of hip hop is all about. After having a bad week, last night I attended this dope hip hop event on Louis Nine Boulevard with a couple of hip hop legends who poked their head in and hung out for a while and left but I was especially excited when Brand Nubian’s own Sadat X stepped foot in the place to be. The place was nicely redecorated of hip hop decor with pictures up and framed from the legendary “Tools of War” events, celebrating 14 years and of course dope graffiti artwork on the wall. People travel from far to be in the Bronx for these events so you know it’s real. Of course my boy RodStarz of Rebel Diaz was hosting, my boy DJ Illanoiz and the incredibly dope new DJ who blew me away, goes by the name of DJ Perly was blessing us with the dope music. Man, she was cutting and scratching and mixing and blending like it was nobody’s business. She spun some really dope classics including Run-D.M.C.’s “Peter Piper.” Before Sadat X hit the stage, I noticed Coke La Rock was there, hip hop’s very first MC, Debbie D from Beat Street, Popmaster Fabel, and DJ Jazzy Jay was there too. We were also blessed with incredible talent from Boca Floja and Flo Kennedy, she was my favorite and then Sadat X hits the stage. Not only does he performs some Brand Nubian classics but he shares his stories of what life was like growing up here in the Bronx. Stories of who taught him who he was and what it meant to be Black. It was truly inspiring, some more inspiration and reminder of being from the Bronx. The night ended with a cypher, meet and greets, and pictures were taken and in true nature, of course, me and a couple of my peeps hit up the chicken spot, up the street on the corner and shared a few laughs. Man, oh man, what a good ass night. Another dope hip hop memory for the books for me. Truly amazing.

The ILLMATIC One: Happy Birthday Nas

Yo, who would’ve guessed that back in 1991, the same guy who said that he was going to hell for snuffin’ Jesus, three years later would have created one of the most illest and most influential hip hop albums of all time? The same album that was awarded best album of the year in 1994 by The Source. That album happens to be “Illmatic.” That same guy was a then 21 year old Nasir Jones from Queensbridge. With 3rd Bass’ MC Serch as his manager and production from Large Professor, Pete Rock, Q-Tip, L.E.S., and DJ Premier on the album, Nas had the right person to manage him to get the right team to create the right album at the right time. There’s no rapper on the face of the planet that’s not influenced by Nas. Your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper is Nas. With a crazy collection of hits for days, Nas is definitely the quintessential New York MC. My personal all time favorite Nas joint is “The World Is Yours.” No words to describe how crazy that beat is and it’s a great motivational song that makes me feel like Muhammad Ali at the start and end of my day. A lot of hip hop fans says “Illmatic” is their favorite Nas album but I personally liked his sophomore 1996 album “It Was Written” a little more. That album had way better production and better songs to me, at least that’s how I felt when I first sat down and listened to it all the way through. “If I Ruled the World” featuring Lauryn Hill, is one of the first joints that pop into my head when I think about the year 1996 and “Street Dreams” is another all time favorite of mine, the remix featuring R. Kelly the most. This is the part of Nas’ career where things started to feel a little different compared to his first two albums and the music was a little boring. “I Am” had “Nas Is Like” and “Hate Me Now” featuring Diddy, that song was so annoying to me honestly, and the album after that was “Nastradamus.” That album is my least favorite Nas album but the single with the same album title and “You Owe Me” featuring Ginuwine are my joints though. “You Owe Me” wouldn’t be the same with Ginuwine to be honest. Sometimes having singers on your hooks can make the song because without them, it’s not the same. 2001’s “Stillmatic” to me was a strong comeback for Nas when he came back with “Ether” dissing Jay-Z. It’s the classic hip hop beef that both Nas and Jay-Z fans still talk about til this day. It’s almost annoying to randomly hear “Yo, Jay-Z or Nas?” SMH! Other joints like “Rule” featuring Amerie is another favorite of mine and “One Mic” were the perfect singles. “One Mic” to me is one of Nas’ most memorable joints. Who doesn’t know that joint? Even your grandma and grandpa knows that joint. “God’s Son” is my third favorite Nas album. So far my top 3 Nas albums are “It Was Written”, “Illmatic”, and “God’s Son”, in that exact order too. Just like “Stillmatic”, this album was another strong one for Nas. Every joint from beginning to end was banger except “Thugz Mansion”, I didn’t care for that one like that but my favorite on the album is “Last Real Nigga Alive.” “Street’s Disciple” I didn’t like as well but “Bridging the Gap” and “Just a Moment” are also my favorites. “Hip Hop Is Dead” is what stated the whole “hip hop is dead” conversations that still happen today in hip hop discussions. Album was okay to me, “Can’t Forget About You” featuring Chrisette Michele is a banger though. “Untitled” originally named “N***er”, was cool too. “Make the World Go Round” featuring The Game and Chris Brown was crazy though. Definitely a top 5 Nas joint to me. Breezy on the hook, you could never go wrong with that. The Game, my favorite West Coast is a beast on them bars, the beat was crazy, the whole joint was crazy. Crazy, crazy, crazy dope. “Life Is Good” is my fourth favorite. It’s a very relaxed and mellow Nas but he was always that way. The album title speaks for itself and that’s the entire vibe of the album. Another great one from Nas and “Bye Baby” featuring Aaron Hall is my favorite on the album along with “Reach Out” featuring my boo Mary J. Blige. She rode that beat like no other and who better to sing on hip hop tracks than the Queen of hip hop soul? Nobody! She took it back to “You Remind Me”, her first joint on this one but y’all should know their first collab joint together for her 1997 album “Share My World” called “Love Is All We Need.” Classic right there. Nasir Jones aka Nasty Nas aka Nas Escobar, one of hip hop’s greatest MC’s, one of the most influential MC’s and definitely in my top 5 list. Yo, happy birthday to you sir! Salute the Queensbridge legend.