<p>Oh man, Ras Kass! I can't wait to hear his new material.
Supposedly, he, Xzibit, and Chino XL are getting the Golden State Warriors back together. This would be great news. I know that Chino XL is featured prominently on the new Sway & Tech CD.</p>
<p>Tally, that's an amazing list. Man. My "classic Hip-hop albums" list is way too long. I'd probably classify 50% of the music I have on my itunes as 'classic'.</p>
<p>How did you feel about Long Hot Summer? My boy DJ JS-1 did the scratches on that.</p>
<p>NAS= overrated</p>
<p>He once claimed that jay-z was gay because his company (rockafella) was named after a guy who died of aids. Honestly nas, honestly. I guess hes too much of a "thug poet" to actually say anything thats true. If i ruled the world i would be putting my foot up Nas's ass 24/7</p>
<p>"How did you feel about Long Hot Summer? My boy DJ JS-1 did the scratches on that."</p>
<p>Only heard 4 songs from it (all on my itunes), and I loved them all. I definitely gotta get the rest. "H.O.O.D.", "Da Grind", "Soda and Soap", and "Oh my God". Sounds really tight so far.</p>
<p>Soda and Soap is so hot. Jean Grae deserves to be way better known than she is... and, I was just thinking on my way to work this morning, so does Chali 2na.</p>
<p>"NAS= overrated"
Nah. You're wrong. For a while, I agree, he wasn't cutting it, but he was just confused (::ahem:: Hate Me Now).</p>
<p>And he called Jay-Z gay because his name rhymes with it. The same for "(Rockafella[sic])" being called ****-a-fella. Rockefeller dying of AIDS is just another line to throw in.
On a side note: What poor dis track writing. If the rest of 'Ether' wasn't so good, I'd be mad at Nas.</p>
<p>"I guess hes too much of a "thug poet" to actually say anything thats true."
What about 'Coon's Picnic (These Are Our Heroes)"? What about "I Know I Can"? What about "Just a Moment"?
Do your reading before you take the test, son.</p>
<p>Okay. Nas has made some bad career moves, and some bad lyrical moves. But for every NaStradamus he's written, there's an Illmatic or a Stillmatic or a Street's Disciple. And especially if you're gonna venerate Jay-Z (which it sounds like you do), nah, man. That doesn't fly. It's like dissing Kant as an intellectual but saying that Hume was your boy.</p>
<p>Guess what Hume is my boy. Ill take his analysis on senses, perception and causality anyday. Kant= Overrated</p>
<p>by the way, your not black</p>
<p>No, but I am hip-hop. Why d'you have to bring race into it? Tony Touch isn't black. Crazy Legs isn't black. 3rd Bass isn't black. Shyne isn't black. Your mom isn't black (ouch!).</p>
<p>KRS-One himself, who many regard as the Teacha of the hip-hop culture, has this to say:
"This is hip-hop, right here! We got people here of every race, every social class, every gender."</p>
<p>Also remember that, according to the teachings of the 5 Percent Nation, the original man was of African-Asiatic origin.</p>
<p>Hume is okay, but ultimately even he accepts that his critique of reason is descriptive, not proscriptive.</p>
<p>I think the never ending Nas vs. Jay-Z saga can be summed up with the following:</p>
<p>--Jay-Z is more consistent; always consistent for that matter</p>
<p>--Nas is either on or he is off; there is no happy medium</p>
<p>--Nas will always be better when he is on, then when Jay-Z is on.</p>
<p>--Jay-Z: best B+ rapper ever. But I would NEVER put him in an echelon with Rakim, GZA, Nas, Eminem, etc</p>
<p>--Nas has made way more trash than Jay-Z, but contrastly Nas has made way more timeless music then Jay-Z</p>
<p>Don't forget, soon after Reasonable Doubt, Jay-Z decided to go mainstream and hasn't really ever looked back. </p>
<p>Nas tried the same after Illmatic, but he wasn't as big a mainstream attraction. He went back to his hip-hop roots and has been "on" ever since Stillmatic. </p>
<p>And since Stillmatic, he's gotten the crown back. The Lost Tapes was amazing, God's Son was solid, Street's Disciple also very good. They won't sell too much since that's no longer his main goal. His singles lately ("made you look", "just a moment", "bridging the gap", "thiefs theme", etc) haven't been accessible to the casual listener, but they're exactly what his fans have been fiending for.</p>
<p>1994-96... Nas > Jay-Z ("It was written" was sick too)
97-2000... Nas < Jay-Z
01-05......Nas > Jay-Z</p>
<p>I think that's a good summary, Tally.</p>
<p>It's funny. Nas is the exact example of what I wish Eminem would be - he was awesome, blew up in the mainstream, got wack, then realised that he was being untrue to himself and playing to mainstream conventions and returned to his roots. It takes a big man to be ballin' with P.Diddy, turn his back on it, and go back to the streets.</p>
<p>As to Nas vs. Jay... they're both good. They both deserve God MC status. I personally prefer Nas because I'm a socially conscious kind of guy, but I'm a huge fan of both. Say all you want about Jay-Z's materialism and his repetitive style/diction/subject matter, but when you listen to his songs, you've gotta smile. The man has class.
Who's a better man? Probably Nas. I would say so, anyways. Who's a better emcee? I can't decide that.</p>
<p>Who's a better emcee?</p>
<p>You gotta be kidding.</p>
<p>Like I said, when NAS is ON he can outshine Jay-Z when he is ON. There is simply no comparison...NONE...if you no anything about hip hop and how this music is made you will concede the fact that if both are at the top of their game Nas comes out on top</p>
<p>But...</p>
<p>Nas is barely ever ON. Jay-Z is not often ON, he's always HOT, but he's rarely ON, but nevertheless he is far FAAAAAAARRRR more consistent than Nas. On 8 days out of 10 Jay could beat Nas. But on those other days Nas could write something that would totally outshine anything Jay has ever done or will ever do...</p>
<p>If this makes sense....</p>
<p>By the way: <a href="http://www.mrblunt.com%5B/url%5D">www.mrblunt.com</a></p>
<p>Sign up, lot of fun discussions, lot of fun audios, politics, etc. GET WIT IT</p>
<p>Yeah, I hear you on that. My point is, MC stands for Master of Ceremonies. Who's better at rocking a crowd?</p>
<p>I don't know.</p>
<p>Also, it depends what you mean by "top of their game." What are you using to contrast?</p>
<p>I guess I would call illmatic much better'n Reasonable Doubt. Blueprint is undeniable fire though, man.</p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
Blueprint is undeniable fire though, man.
[/QUOTE]
</p>
<p>"Girls, Girls, Girls" and "H.O.V.A" are fire? We must have deferent definition of the word "fire" then because when 2 out of 12 songs are annoying, plus "Renegade" where Jay got his life handed to him by Eminem...there is a definate problem with calling the album "hot"</p>
<p>Top of their game. I'm talking Jay's perspective, not his style but his perspective are basic. He doesn't bring anything different to the table...he's basically telling PJ stories the way they've always been told "Projects, roaches and rats" type nah mean? There is no self reflection "that buck that bought a bottle could have stuck the lotto" no "Open your eyes history's told foul" type dynamic. Jay-Z has never dropped anything "ill" in the true sense of the word the way Rakim or Nas or Eminem have...the material is not comparable. Jay is much like Big L in that his style is very VERY ill, but his content is all very basic (money, cash, blah blah blah) no new perspective, or outlook.</p>
<p>Finally, you want to see a crowd rocked? Go to an MOP, Mobb Deep, Cypress Hill, Wu show...or for an incredible show without all the violence go see Beasties, Tribe, or Roots, equally as good but different</p>
<p>Renegade's hot, man. It's pretty indisputable.</p>
<p>All right. Perspective-wise, yeah. But I guess we just have different emcee criteria then.</p>
<p>"Jay is much like Big L in that his style is very VERY ill, but his content is all very basic (money, cash, blah blah blah) no new perspective, or outlook."
I can agree with that. I now see where you're coming from - and I agree. That's why I say that Nas is personally preferable to Jay-Z. But as a lyricist, they're both nice. Nas is a better person than Jay-Z, but they both convey what they want to get through to the audience in an impeccable manner.
Girls, Girls, Girls is a heck of an annoying song though.</p>
<p>As to crowd-rocking... I'll take KRS-One over all those others any day. Except Wu. I would cut off an extremity to have been at Rock the Bells 2004.
The Roots have a mad nice live show.</p>
<p>
[QUOTE]
Nas is a better person than Jay-Z
[/QUOTE]
</p>
<p>What in gods name does this even mean?</p>
<p>Look, when Nas is at his best he will forever be able to beat Jay-Z when he is at his best. NO, Jay's "money, cash" can never compare to Nas's "histories told foul" its just not happening. That's all I'm saying.</p>
<p>"better person" = More socially conscious.</p>
<p>Of course Jay-Z's "money, cash" can't compare to Nas' best. That's not his best.</p>
<p>You're looking at Jay and wanting him to be Nas. Of course he's going to fail at playing the street poet, because that's NOT what he does. What the heck does "Nas is at his best will forever be able to beat Jay-Z at his best" mean? You have to define "at his best" for both Jay-Z and Nas, and also "beat." What, in record sales? No, not record sales. In lyricism? Maybe, but it depends on personal taste.</p>
<p>I like Nas a lot. More than Jay-Z. But it seems as though you're just a Nas fanboy, and unable to appreciate the talents of Jay-Z which, while different from Nas', are just as substantial. At least, I see that you have set forth no proscriptive metric with which I can examine both of them and say determinedly 'Nas is better'.</p>
<p>Actually no, Jay was my first favorite emcee ever...but he's fallen way waaaaaaaaaaaaaaayy off since 98'</p>
<p>I don't know if he's fallen "way waaaaaaaaaaaaaaayy off," but yeah, I would say there are better mc's than him.</p>
<p>Still, saying Jay-Z's fallen off could have been true for Nas once. I cite the "Hate Me Now" video and his collabo with QB's Finest on "Oochie Wally Wally":
"I f*** her b**** face
More then her waist, fo' real
And aint no p*<strong><em>, like new p</em></strong>*
That's how a n**** feel"</p>
<p>I take your point, though. Nas at his prime is probably better'n Jay at his. But how much has Nas been at the top of his game?</p>