Nas - Stillmatic (December 18, 2001)

In the words of George Clooney's character in O' Brother, Where Art Thou?, Nasir Jones was in a tight spot. His fourth album, Nastradamus, sold poorly, primarily because it sucked balls. (Please note that when I say that Nastradamus sold poorly, it still sold millions of copies, so it's not like Nas had to take a second job working graveyard at White Castle.) Critics had the overall feeling that Nas's career as one of the top rappers in the game was essentially over, and began to ghostwrite obituaries. Radio stopped playing his other, better singles (at least, they did where I am). And other rappers seized the opportunity to take shots at Nasir, rappers as varied as former allies Prodigy (of Mobb Deep) and Cormega, to crosstown rivals Memphis Bleek and Shawn Carter. It was becoming abundantly clear that if Nasir wanted to protect his reputation, he would have to act accordingly. And I don't mean actually "act", either. (Anyone else catch his performance in Belly? Terrible.) 

 

I've already gone over the beef between Nasir and Cormega at length (for the uninitiated, let's just say that Cormega once stole Nas's binky and Nasir's ability to hold a grudge has reached heights no human has ever seen without the aid of telescopic equipment), but the more imminent threat to his breadwinning at this point was Jay-Z. Most people seem to assume that there has always been a rivalry in place between the two (since they're both successful rappers from New York), and most people are probably right, but for Max's sake, humor me and acknowledge that the beef didn't truly begin until Nasir responded to a line in a Memphis Bleek song that wasn't necessarily intended as a verbal attack, but Bleek responded as you would expect any rapper to, especially when Shawn Carter is ghostwriting your shit. Nas, of course, responded back to this, but threw in a thinly veiled dis toward Shawn for good measure: it would only have been more obvious if he rode naked into Times Square on a purple unicorn with a neon sandwich board that read "Fuck Jay-Z". Jay-Z, as we all know, responded in the classiest fashion possible: he called him out in front of a sold-out audience at radio station Hot 97's annual Summer Jam concert. The rest is history. (If, by '"history", you mean "a series of back-and-forth outright dis tracks followed by some passive-aggressive grumbling, then a swift resolution that goes against everything the beef was about", of course.) 

 

Nas knew that his fifth solo album, Stillmatic, whose first single he hilariously dropped on Jay-Z's birthday in 2001, had to be a classic in the vein of his debut, so he made the misguided move to title it something similar to his first disc, Illmatic (I gotta tell you, kids, this business strategy never actually works in hip hop). Far from being Nastradamus leftovers, Nas recorded all-new material illustrating the frame of mind he was in. While the album is ultimately about reflection on his life, on his hood, and the changes that need to be made (and, also, how Jay-Z can suck his dick), Stillmatic marked some transitions in his professional life, not the least of which was the apparent end of the relationship between Nas and producer extraordinaire DJ Premier (although Primo has recently promised a Nas album produced entirely by him: I'm sure it will see its release right around the time Royce Da 5'9"'s Primo-blessed disc, the new Gangstarr album, and that fucking DJ Premier solo disc on Fat Joe's Terror Squad label that's been promised for twelve years hit the shelf). Happily, Stillmatic also contains the first collaboration between Nasir and producer Salaam Remi, who at this point was best known for his work with the Fugees, Canibus, and a world-class bread pudding that he made for me two weeks ago; he would go on to provide Nas with a newer, rawer sound and direction to follow, one that would go a long way toward winning back the fans that walked away during "Hate Me Now". 

 

Critics threw phrases such as "instant classic" and "return to form" once Stillmatic hit store shelves, but they said the same thing about Jennifer Lopez's horrid acting in El Cantante and the songs that Charles Manson penned in prison. Stillmatic did little to ease the tension in Nas's personal life: in fact, after its release, he found himself with even more enemies, a position he still finds himself in today.  

 

Stillmatic sold decent numbers and proved that Nasir Jones had a birth right to a record deal in the first place; it also set up the audience for album number six, God's Son, that would see its release the following year, right after Columbia Records, Nas's label at the time, trumped the bootleggers with their compilation The Lost Tapes, which featured songs Nas recorded and ultimately scrapped from the likes of Nastradamus, I Am..., and his unreleased third album I Claudius. But who cares what everyone else thinks? 

 

1. STILLMATIC (THE INTRO) 

Starts off as another one of those generic self-important rap album intros that I love so fucking much, but then Nasir starts rhyming. It's curious that he mentions the fact that he will never make another Illmatic because he's always moving forward, but then named his fifth album Stillmatic in an attempt to trick his old fans. Hmm... 

 

2. ETHER 

The infamous Jay-Z dis track makes its appearance early in the sequencing. This is Nas's response to Shawn's "The Takeover"; while the lyrics are hyper-personal, just like how I like my dis tracks, I care for the beat about as much as I care for any Joel Schumacher movie after The Lost Boys. Which is to say, I don't. For my money, "The Takeover" is the better song, and Nas's supposed comeback is only possible because Shawn brought him back into the game just after he started to become complacent. (Comments can be left at the end of the write-up.) I also thought it was weird that he kinds takes a shot at Foxy Brown, for no real reason. 

 

3. GOT UR SELF A... 

The first single, which capitalized on the popularity of HBO's The Sopranos by stealing (sorry, I meant 'sampling') the lyrics from the song that features over the opening credits. I always felt this was a very bizarre choice by Columbia as the first single, and they obviously thought the same thing, since they deleted the firearm reference from its original title, "Got Ur Self A Gun", which itself was altered from the working title "Puppy Dogs & Firecrackers (Get Your Back Up Off The Wall)". It also didn't sound anything like the crap that was on the radio in late 2001, but that shouldn't dissuade you: listening to it today, it actually sounds pretty good, even though the chorus is out of place. 

 

4. SMOKIN' 

Meh. 

 

5. YOU'RE DA MAN 

There was a bug hub-bub on the Interweb when fans discovered that Nasir was reuniting with the Large Professor on Stillmatic: the two hadn't worked together on a song since Illmatic. As such, listeners immediately claimed this song to be proof that the Nasir of old, before the Escobar alias and the nosedive into Puff Daddy territory, had returned, and I suppose it makes sense, as it sounds pretty damn good, but not great. Extra P has done better work, both before "You're Da Man" and since. 

 

6. REWIND 

The other Large Professor production contribution, although it doesn't sound like anything I've heard from him before. Obviously inspired by Memento, Nas narrates a story in reverse, and although it is very awkward hearing Nas spit lines like "Go he there!", it's interesting enough to warrant you listening to it once. Once. (By the way, anyone who enjoyed Christopher Nolan's Memento should also check out his debut film Following, a small-crime caper told out of sequence. Or you can just watch The Dark Knight when it comes out this summer.) 

 

7. ONE MIC 

The second single. I always wondered how strange it was for Columbia to release singles to radio that ostensibly sound like album tracks. This only spun on the radio once around my way, but still deserves your ears anyway, just for the gimmick alone: Nas's voice grows louder (and larger) or shrinks, depending on the beat, which constantly changes. It doesn't read well in a blog, but it's pretty fucking effective when you listen to it. 

 

8. 2ND CHILDHOOD 

The final song (to date) that DJ Premier did for a Nas album track. Oddly, this is the most boring collaboration between the two hip hop giants (even worse than their work on Nastradamus); Primo's beat comes nowhere close to being on the level of Nas's storytelling. A huge disappointment. 

 

9. DESTROY & REBUILD 

Nas wakes up, he showers (with soap), he eats breakfast, and goes to the studio to dis the hell out of Cormega, Prodigy, and former bandmate Nature; unfortunately, he does so over a beat that lies just this side of corny. After taking a sly potshot at Shawn Carter, he actually proposes rebuilding the relationships with Prodigy and Nature, something that is virtually unheard of on a dis track. (As expected, he doesn't even attempt to patch things up with Cormega, who was out getting a curry at the time.) Judging by the output of the two rappers, though, I doubt Prodigy and Nature are returning Nas's calls. (Ironically, the only artist of the three that he was able to rebuild the friendship with was actually Cormega, but this would happen several years later. Just thought I'd throw that in.) 

 

10. THE FLYEST (FEAT AZ)

Nas brings old friend and baggage handler AZ back into the fold, and this song proves that they can sound good together; however, they could sound great together if the song itself didn't suck so damn much. Not even close to "Life's A Bitch" standards. Sorry to disappoint you. 

 

11. BRAVEHEART PARTY (FEAT THE BRAVEHEARTS & MARY J. BLIGE) 

This song is goofy to write about for two reasons. First off, it represents yet another poor business decision by Nasir: Stillmatic was intended to be a return to form for Nas after the disastrous Nastradamus, which was ruined by club-friendly tracks, so of course he gets his Braveheart frozen-banana peddlers to rhyme with him on a shitty club banger produced by Swizz Beats, who should really not work anymore. Makes perfect sense to me. Secondly, the song was deleted from future pressings of Stillmatic, not because it sucked, but because Mary J. Blige, the hook's guest performer, claimed that the song was an unfinished song for her intended use, which Nas and friends swiped and released it without her consent, and threatened legal action. Which explains why Mary never specifically mentions the word "Braveheart" in her chorus. I include this track because it's on my copy, but if you were to buy this today, it would jump from "The Flyest" straight to...

 

12. RULE (FEAT AMERIE) 

Remember the Trackmasters? Yeah, nobody does, but they seemed to believe their career was still at its peak, so they sampled the shit out of Tears For Fears's "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" and got Nas to flash back to "If I Ruled The World", a bona-fide hit collaboration between the two camps. This song is okay, but not very good; as such, I imagine it would have done pretty well on the radio, if it were ever released as a single. Whatever happened to Amerie? She was cute, and her voice wasn't bad; it's a shame she never broke big in the States (I always liked that "One Thing" song, and the song that I can't remember the title to where the video features her walking down the street in those super-short shorts. But I'm getting off topic). 

 

13. MY COUNTRY (FEAT MILLENNIUM THUG) 

A good message derailed by the workmanlike hook. Millennium Thug meshes with Nasir surprisingly well. 

 

14. WHAT GOES AROUND 

I did a double take when the lyrical flow kicked in: I had to make sure that this was still Stillmatic and not, in fact, a Lupe Fiasco song (listen to it, and you'll see what I mean). I still think it's just missing a hook by Matthew Santos, but whatever. Salaam Remi's first production work for Nasir appears on this track; it would be the start of a beautiful friendship. 

 

The following song is listed as a bonus track: 

 

15. EVERY GHETTO (FEAT BLITZ) 

The lyrics are certainly much better than Nastradamus, but the beats sound waaaay too polished to recall thoughts of Illmatic. 

 

FINAL THOUGHTS: Stillmatic proves that Nas still has what it takes to captivate an audience, at least with his lyrics, so on that measure the comeback was a success. However, without actually being bad, this album isn't enjoyable to listen to at all, a fault on which I blame the beats, which are mostly z-grade. Mostly. The inclusion of Large Professor and Salaam Remi are a step in the right direction, though, and I look forward to writing about album number six, which given my writing schedule, should happen around 2013. 

 

BUY OR BURN? This album was mostly about proving that Nas hadn't fallen off of the lyrical bandwagon, so in staying that course, Nas pulls a Ras Kass. You're not missing anything by simply burning this album, but you should at least take a gander at the tracks listed below, and then pull your copy of Illmatic from its CD case and listen to that instead. 

 

BEST TRACKS: "One Mic"; "What Goes Around"; "You're Da Man" 

 

 -Max 

 

RELATED POSTS:

Nas - Illmatic 

Nas - It Was Written 

Nas - I Am... 

Nas - Nastradamus  

Nas, AZ, Foxy Brown, & Nature Present The Firm: The Album