Nas - It Was Written

[The Notorious LOL]

This album has aged well. Really there is only a couple considerably weak tracks, and even those are mostly hindered by their hooks rather than the song in full. Maybe it just seems better in comparison to Nas fairly lukewarm catalog. The best of the best songs on here are among some of the best he's ever written.

[Kid Presentable]

I like it as much as Illmatic.

[Ally Al]

agreed

[mickill]

If you took Black Girl Lost and Watch Dem Niggas off it, it's almost perfect. Suspect definitely falls in the good song/weak hook category. But Take It In Blood, I Gave You Power, and Street Dreams are all easily top 20 Nas tracks. And The Message and Shootouts are my other favorites.

I think Hip Hop Is Dead is the real slept on album, though. It gets shitted on basically. And ever since Lupe Fiasco mentioned It Was Written was his favorite rap album a whole lot of sleepers decided that this shit was underrated all of a sudden.

I still don't think it's stronger than Illmatic in any way, but it's definitely solid. I Am..., Nastradamus and Street's Disciple on the other hand....

[The Notorious LOL]

I remember reading that interview where he talked about how good it was and I was like "nah, its pretty mediocre" cuz I hadnt given it a solid listen since I was 17 or 18. I hadnt touched it since til maybe 6 months ago...save a few tracks like Affirmative Action and Street Dreams.

[Laserface]

yeah it's really good - "i gave you power" is amazing.

what do you people think of "the nigger album"? i friend of mine keeps telling me it's great but i don't really like it... like, at all, except for maybe "sly fox" and that song wit that chorus "esco, let's go"