I don't get it

I don't get it

It's all about the beats

And you may have had to have gone through some 'street shit' to appreciate the lyrics. Or at least seen that side of life.

wow racist

The beats are ridiculous, but that has already been said. The lyricism of this album is astounding. I remember a music critic once comparing what Nas accomplished with Queensbridge being the contemporary equivalent of what Joyce did for Dublin. I think this is a bit of a stretch, but the comparison is valid. Illmatic, for me, is the perfect rap album. It has the perfect blend of beats, skits, and rhymes. Not a bad track on the whole thing. Represent!

Ikr *dab*

Go listen to the third verse in One Love with the lyrics in front of you. Its poetry

im with you OP i listened to it a few years ago and was wondering why it was considered legend

It doesn't overstay its welcome with unnecessary tracks (36 chambers) or stupid skits (Chronic, Ready to die) that plague other contemporary records. Its direct, concise, contained brilliance in under 40 minutes

I imagine you wouldn’t user

It's the Led Zeppelin II of rap albums. It doesn't sound so special today because it's literally the archetypical east coast hip hop album and the one that pushed the themes and musical underpinnings to sublime perfection in the way that only a fresh artist doing the best to copy those that influenced him could.

Led Zeppelin II, likewise, doesn't sound nearly as special today as it did back in 1969, but like Nas in 1994, that doesn't make it any less perfect.