Version 2.0

When an artist drops an album that's so highly regarded like the legendary Illmatic, its honestly damn-near impossible to top it. Nas' Illmatic is one of the greatest albums ever made, and the first CD to ever recieve 5 Mics from The Source, back when that actually meant something. After Nas unleashed that classic, there really was nowhere for him to go but down. But how low would he go? Well, just two years later Nas dropped what would be a long-awaited sequel to his classic, aptly titled It Was Written. Many fans expected Nas to hit the public with an incredible piece of classic street poetry, maybe not surpassing his debut, but at least coming close. Did it happen? Nope. Instead Nas felt that he needed to switch his style from the prophet that he was on Illmatic to the mafioso, drug kingpin character known as Nas Escobar. I typically like cinematic mafioso (i.e. Raekwon the Chef, Kool G. Rap, Jay-Z), but it plain and simply didn't fit Nas. On It Was Written, Nas seemingly lost all of the passion he once had and instead came off as contrived, juvenile and false. The brilliant poet that graced the ten tracks on Illmatic was dead, seemingly sniped away by the egotistical Nas Escobar...


Track List & Rating

1. Album Intro f/ AZ (NOT RATED)
2. The Message (5 Stars)
3. Street Dreams (3 Stars)
4. I Gave You Power (5 Stars)
5. Watch Dem Niggas (4 Stars)
6. Take It In Blood (3 Stars)
7. Nas is Coming (1 Star)
8. Affirmative Action f/ Cormega, AZ, and Foxy Brown (4 1/2 Stars)
9. The Set Up f/ Havoc (2 1/2 Stars)
10. Black Girl Lost (5 Stars)
11. Suspect (2 Stars)
12. Shootouts (2 1/2 Stars)
13. Live Nigga Rap f/ Mobb Deep (4 Stars)
14. If I Ruled the World f/ Lauryn Hill (5 Stars)
15. BONUS: Silent Murder (1 1/2 Stars)


As I said in the opening of the review, when Nas tries to be mafioso, it simply never works. He's not cut out for it. However, I will admit that on It Was Written, Nas does indeed shine even as the Nas Escobar character. His creativity and ability to craft brilliant rhymes pushed through all of the bravado. On "Album Intro", Nas delivers perhaps the best intro to an album in his entire career. Basically, Nas plays the part of a slave who has had enough abuse from his master, and revolts against him. What it seems like to me is that Nas is using symbolism to tell us that he has been released from his chains... unfortunately it never happened. It's a shame that such a powerful introductory track was wasted on an album that never really fulfilled the expectations and the teases that the intro seemingly foretold. After that, Nas and AZ talk back and forth about nothing, reminiscent of "The Genesis", only completely unnecessary.

"The Message", produced by The Trackmasters, kicks this thing into high-gear. Immediately, you can hear the change in the overall Nas sound just by the production, which is a nice little assortment of mafioso-esque violins, cello and piano. The beat honestly feels as if it were ripped right out of "The Godfather", and yeah, I like it. Nas complex lyricism and rhyme-style remains intact from Illmatic thankfully, although his subject matter has changed somewhat. While "N.Y. State of Mind" was seemingly an overhead view of the projects from Nas' point of view, "The Message" finds Nas rapping a story in the first-person. Nas immediately gets comfortable in his role as a mafioso drug-lord, and although it indeed does work on this song, it doesn't last for the rest of the album.

I honestly used to like "Street Dreams", but not anymore. This is filler, plain and simple. On this song, Nas attempts to balance his original street poetry style of lyricism with his newfound mafioso-esque rhyming and fails miserably. Nas almost seems confused as to which persona he wants to be, and this greatly effects his performance. The lyrics are a watered-down compared to what we're used to, and the overall sound is very radio-friendly. With Nas singing the hook and a glossy, sparkly beat which will probably sound decent the first couple of listens, but will soon get on your nerves. Obviously, Nas samples The Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams" for the chorus, as if you didn't know.

Nas follows that disposable piece of gibberish with the classic "I Gave You Power", produced by the legendary DJ Premier. This is a song that could've been placed right in the middle of Illmatic and I'm sure nobody would've noticed. Production-wise, hip-hop fans should be smart enough to realize that Primo hardly ever delivers a beat short from being stellar, and this is one of his best. The saddening, descending violin loop fits the depressing mood perfectly, as even Primo holds back on the samples and trademark scratching.

Nas however, is the true star on here, crafting a track of brilliance and creativity. Nas uses the extended metaphor technique to basically assume the role of a handgun and describe everything that he goes through in an endless cycle of senseless violence and death. Nas narrates the tale of how a handgun is traded throughout people, explaining the unique sense of power that it gives you, although it's purely false. Nas' ability to intertwine his trademark street poetry into the mind of a gun is simply stunning. The lyricism itself is amazing, complete with well-written rhymes that make sense from start to finish and provide a true social-consciousness to an album needing it. This is Illmatic-worthy, and that's saying something.

Alas, the filler begins. "Take it in Blood" has a pretty nice, sprinkly beat to back up Nas' effective mic presence, but the actual lyricism and subject matter is incredibly below average. Nas once again tries to be Raekwon, using the mafioso slang and all, going to far as to even admitting the metamorphosis he went through. Nas lyrics no longer have that spark, and the listener (or at least me) has a good chance of winding up bored. "Nas is Coming" could be the worst Nas song ever. West Coast Legend Dr. Dre attempts the underground east coast mafioso sound, and quite simply fails miserably. While some of the keys in the beat are decent (like the break), he screws it up completely by having the background singers recite "Nas is Comin'" over and over which acts as one of the most annoying things I've heard in a long time. Listening to that damn sample over and over again honestly makes me want to vommit. If that wasn't bad enough, Nas lyricism is watered-down and much more commercialized than just your typical mafioso track. This track is awful, plain and simple.

"Affirmative Action" is unfairly hated on by many heads, but I honestly feel that it is actually an excellent piece of mafioso, even for The Firm. Nas is joined by AZ, Cormega, and Foxy Brown (The Original Firm, fuck Nature). Once again, those "Godfather" cello strings are ack, giving the song that distinct mafioso sound. However, I don't care, I fucking love this beat. Nas, Cormega, and AZ come correct with cinematic, movie-esque subject matter and complex lyricism, with all three spitting energetic verses which really adds to the head-nodding factor. Foxy Brown, who I don't hate as much as one would think, comes on the end of the track with a verse that drags-on far too long and gets boring, which is why I had to knock that half-point. Cormega's sick verse and AZ's opener are both awesome, but I'm afraid it's the teacher Nas who truly steals the show on this one.

"Yo, my mind is seein through your design like blind fury, I shine jewelry sippin on crushed grapes, we lust papes, and push cakes inside the casket at Just wake, It's sickenin, he just finished biddin upstate, And now the projects, is talkin that somebody gotta die shit, It's logic, as long as it's nobody that's in my clique, My man Smoke, know how to expand coke, and Mr. Coffee, Feds cost me two mill' to get the system off me, "Life's a Bitch," but God-forbid the bitch divorce me, I'll be flooded with ice so hellfire can't scorch me, cuban cigars meetin Foxy at Demars, Movin cars, your top papi Senor Escobar".

Perhaps the second Illmatic-esque track on this album is "Black Girl Lost". Immediately the first thing I got from this track is that it's incredibly radio-friendly, but this time it doesn't work against the song like it did on "Street Dreams". The light-hearted, xylophone melody mixed with heavy bass sets the mood here as a very catchy, radio-friendly single, but an enjoyable one. Nas mobster persona is put on hold here, as he basically writes in journalistic fashion (i.e. "One Love") to a girl who went from being somewhat successful but was turned into a prostitute due to circumstances which she could've controlled, but was too naive to. Sadly, it's this kind of shit that happens every day in the real world and we can seemingly do nothing about it except educate, like Nas does here. Nas' honest lyricism is touching and powerful, a far cry from the image he's trying to portray on the majority of this album.

"Suspect" and "Shootouts" are two pieces of disposable filler which I honestly don't like. What else do you expect me to say? This is more of that mobster bullshit that doesn't work for Nas at all, and even with Havoc behind the boards, it sounds just plain boring. As a matter of fact, these two Havoc beats are pretty average compared to some of the stuff on The Infamous and other albums he did during this era. The majority of the moments of these songs finds Nas once again struggling with his identity crisis of wanting to be a mob-boss, and a street poet, and it never works. Besides just that, his lyricism has definitely been lowered by more than just a few notches.

The album's closer "If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)" is one of those tracks that some people love, and others hate on with a passion. Nas samples two hip-hop classics to craft this (Whodini's "Friends" for the beat, and Kurtis Blow's "If I Ruled the World" for the hook), and delivers a great song, in my humble opinion. The light-hearted beat perfectly fits with the emotional, prophetic subject matter that Nas displays. Sparkly drums and xylophones build to a crescendo, and soon fall. The beat often changes to add or remove more bass. These beatbreaks make the song refreshing, and definitely a twist over the originals. Lauryn Hill's R&B singing provides the opening and the hook, which are nothing short of incredible. Lyrically, Nas paints the picture of a dream world, and although some of his wishes are a bit selfish, a lot of them are indeed powerful, honest, and noble. Nas' dream consists of a planet with no racism, more money spread around to the poor, all the weed you can smoke, and a lack of overbearing politics. Indeed, some of it is quite selfish, but at least it's human. Usually, it's a mixture: ("It sounds foul but every girl I meet'll go downtown, I'll open every cell in Attica, send em to Africa"),

It Was Written suffers primarily from Nas inability to be himself. Nas attempts to "expand his horizons" and try a new style of hip-hop comes out a complete failure. For the laymens: Nas sucks at being mafioso. It Was Written has a handful of classic tracks which still provide the emotion, creativity, and intellect expressed on Illmatic. Apparently Nas didn't learn from his mistake and continued being a mafia kingpin all the way into his third album I Am. It wouldn't be until 2001's Stillmatic that Nas finally regained his identity as a street poet. When it comes to his lyricism, Nas is pretty much always great and pulls through on the majority of this album, and thankfully didn't retreat into whackness just yet (see Nastradamus). This album isn't necessarily a bad one, but it's a bit dissapointing and contains a bunch of mediocre moments that simply don't fit. I do suggest getting a copy of this, but be sure you look in the "used" or the "7 dollars and under" pile before dropping any funds for it. Hell, if you really want something like this, just watch Scarface.

3.5 Stars... Rounded Down to 3





THE NAS COLLECTION:

Illmatic

It Was Written

I Am...

Nastradamus

Stillmatic

Nas - God's Son





Recommended: Yes