Nas

Street's Disciple

Hip Hop the way I want it

Review Score:

(8/10)
There are some things that hip-hop should just not do. Double LP's are usually rule one of the list. When an artist releases a double album, hip-hop heads are usually given a record 15 songs too long, sprinkled with obligatory posse cuts and humorless, pointless skits that detract from the album. One renowned rapper even conceded this fact by re-releasing a single disc album with his favorite songs from his double disc effort (here's a hint, the re-issue was named Blueprint 2.1). Nas's eighth release, Street's Disciple, is the rare exception.

While other emcees have decided to go more of a novelty route (Eminem - we're looking squarely in your corner here), Nas veered into the political, introspective, and artistic side of things on Disciple. Nas's latest effort gives hip-hop fans the LP they have been waiting for since Illmatic rocked everyone's stereo. While his albums between the two have been inappropriately and appropriately panned at times (It Was Written and Nastradamus respectively), flashes of brilliance have always been there. What Nas set out to on Stillmatic, reach the apex of his popularity and surpass it once again, he has accomplished on Street's Disciple.

While his debut classic was a streamlined nine songs, Street's Disciple is anything but, carrying 24 songs over two discs. While his debut focused on storytelling rhymes from the street corner, Disciple finds Nas older, wiser, but still just as hungry and ready to attack the obstacles still impeding his life. Nas is able to grow as an artist without having to try and channel his best Prince imitation. It's refreshing to hear a hip-hop artist who isn't afraid to not only continue making hip-hop records, but to strive to make even better records than in the past.

Nas returns to his political soapbox again on "These Are Our Heroes", a skeptical look into black entertainment, taking his stance by scornfully mocking those in question, "Let's hear it - one for the coons, on UPN-9 and WB, who `Yes Masta' on TV, whatever happened to Weezy? The Red Foxx's? Never got Emmy's, but they were real to me." Kobe Bryant for one can't escape Nas's wrath, as he cuts into Bryant's extramarital choices.
Nas pairs with his own bride Kelis on "American Way," which is driven by both a sample of George Clinton's "Atomic Dog," and a satire on the apathy of Americans: "I don't about the runways, I don't care about a Gay, I don't care about the dying of AIDS, but I care that I got paid."

Artistically, Nas finds new boundaries by tapping his father, avant-garde blues artist, Olu Dara, to assist with the Muddy Waters influenced single "Bridging the Gap." "War," continues the theme with a soulful chorus by Keon Bryce. Bryce's melodic chorus camouflages the callous lyrics of "There's a war in the streets tonight, and nobody's really feelin' alright, I got a blunt for my chronic, a juice for my tonic, I know now, that I'm feelin' right if it goes down." Imagine a parent singing a sweet lullaby to a child, but then actually singing how much they despise their job, four-letter words and all. That's soulful.

Taking his introspective side even further, Nas also chose to pen several songs having to do with his impending marriage with R&B star Kelis. "Getting Married" proclaims, "this is a thug's wedding day," and provides us with a pseudo wedding day walkthrough, while "Remember the Times" has him remembering his past exploits, to great uncensored detail - proving that marriage doesn't have him going soft on the mic.

Another unique moment of Disciple is "U.B.R. (Unauthorized Biography of Rakim)," in which Nas recites the life of hip-hop legend Rakim. It's these types of moments that make Street's Disciple a standout album. When Nas isn't providing the listener with a look into his life, a look into the politics surrounding the hip-hop nation, he is providing the listener with a look into the growth of his craft.

Another positive aspect of the album is that the guest appearances don't subtract from the album itself. Each artist, from Busta Rhymes, to Ludacris, to Kelis each complement the song they accompany, rather than many albums which have forced guest spots just to bust through the walls of Clear Channel in order to secure radio airplay (refer to exhibit A: re-release of "My Boo" by Usher and Alicia Keys). The duets are not just: "chorus, cut in cameo verse, chorus, cut in artist verse, chorus," as so many collaborations become. This is evident when Nas works with his wife and his father most notably.

Album missteps include leaving off a track with longtime partner-in-rhyme AZ that appeared on bootleg versions, as well as the inclusion of the Maxwell aided "No One Else in the Room," which seems out of place and somewhat generic.

All things considered, it may have taken Nas awhile to get to this point; from Nasty Nas, to Escobar, to Nastradamus, and back; but Disciple makes the trip worth the wait. Ten years ago, street corners swelled with hip-hop zealots proclaiming the new king of New York based off of Illmatic. With Street's Disciple, Nas appears ready to take the throne.

More Reviews: