In addition to offering his thoughts on Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar as part of Complex’s newly-released cover story with the TDE lyricist, Nas also spoke on the West Coast musician in a separate feature story released by Complex.
The Queensbridge emcee was questioned about Kendrick’s good kid, m.A.A.d city album and the pressure the rapper faces on the album’s follow-up. He also discussed his debut album Illmatic and its follow-up, 1996’s It Was Written.
When questioned about Kendrick competing against and surpassing himself with his good kid, m.A.A.d city follow-up, Nas went on to express his confidence in K-Dot and revealed that there’s no way the rapper can mess up on his next studio album.
“But I think he got it. I know he got it,” Nas said. “There’s no way he can mess it up because the love he has from the game is so large that he can almost mumble on the record and it’s going to be in rhythm and it’s going to be next level. So he’s in a great place because, again, there’re so many single artists that the album artist just holds up as a whole different kind of value. And he’s that kind of guy. So whatever he does, in my opinion, will be appreciated but at the same time he knows he has to bring it. It’s about challenges, right? Life’s about challenges. In this game it’s about challenges.”
Nas later recalled the pressure he felt in his early years due to the immense amount of competition there was in the rap game at the time.
“Oh, for sure,” he said. “Because you had Jay Z coming. You had Ghostface’s first album. You had Raekwon. You had Mobb Deep. These guys had cornered the rap game off. And also Biggie, and many others. So the competition was severe for me to put out the next record.”
Lastly, Nas was asked about comparisons between Kendrick’s good kid, m.A.A.d city and his debut album, Illmatic. He stated that it’s not fair to compare the two albums since good kid, m.A.A.d city represents a different time and Kendrick endured a different journey to get to where he is today in his music career.
“No, it’s not a fair comparison to me because Illmatic represented a different time and a different expression for different reasons,” Nas said. “The times inspired the sound of that—the climate of the music business, the rap game, the industry, the year, and life in itself. It’s not fair to Kendrick’s album either because his album is a brand new expression that represents these times, the sound represents what’s happening now, he’s changing things today.
“You can compare them because you can compare me and Kendrick in a lot of ways,” he added. “But at the same time you have to respect his journey. His journey is his own fresh journey and to compare it with me or anybody else is not fair to him. You gotta respect his music for him. It’s cool to compare it but at the end of the day, allow him to have his own lane.”
Kendrick has remained relatively tight-lipped when it concerns the details of his next studio album, but did recently reveal that Dr. Dre is working with him on the project.
“One thing about Dre is you can’t take the music away from him no matter how much money he has,” the rapper said during an interview with KIIS FM in June. “He’s always gonna be right there in that studio. That’s before the deal, after the deal. He’s always locked in there. That’s something that I know personally.”
RELATED: Kendrick Lamar Responds To Nas Calling “good kid, m.A.A.d city” One Of His Favorite Albums Of 2012
maad city not a classic
According to you.
In my humble opinion, out of all the modern rappers, Nothing Was The Same and My Krazy Life are the only two modern classics. m.A.A.d city? Not cutting it!
You’re horrible at trolling.
That’s a joke, right? NWTS and MKL are weed plates.
I’m not even a kendrick lamar dickrider, like that, but his album is the only album I still bump from J. Cole to even eminem’s last two albums it’s the only one I go back to. It will stand the test of time in my opinion.
It. Was Written is better than Illmatic.
The next big thing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxa0sPtybXY&index=1&list=UU2MocxLZcIfteB-PwbdM9vA
the only classic album of our time is gkmc
MY Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (which some argue is better than GKMC), Life Is Good, Respect the Architect, and Born Sinner.
I would definitely argue for twisted fantasy
Dark Twisted Fantasy is 10 times better
Take Care blew it away.
Gkmc is the illmatic of my generation
Amazing album. When I listen to it, it was more than music, it was a story of a person just like me with dreams, fear, dangers, trouble, happiness, adolescence and maturity. He stayed true to his roots he kept it original but different. God bless Kendrick Lamar and hip hop
Good god, I havent heard an album like this in a GOOD minute. I will actually purchase this rather than download it. If hip hop artist pumped out more stuff like this, labels could move units like it was ’98.
gkmc >>>>>>>>>>>>
agreed, this album is solid gold.
hip hop has been stale since ’98, i’ve been wondering if i’ve been all alone in that realization.
Wow. One thing I liked about the production of this album is that the beats are different from current hip hop albums and it sounded like all the producers were on the same page. It almosts seems as if the whole album was produced by one person. That’s how smoothly the album flows. Great Album Kendrick.
TDE’s engineer Ali deserves some credit as well.
One of the best Album I ever heard!! Point Blank!!
This album will go down as one of the best albums of all time for any genre just like Illmatic, Reasonable Doubt, Ready to Die and the other rap albums that are considered the best of all time. When those albums came out we didn’t understand how great they because were very young at the time. Now we have a chance to witness a classic and a legend in the making. The storytelling is amazing. It’s like a movie. You can’t just listen to a couple of songs or skip through. You have to listen straight through from beginning to end.
This deserves every bit of this rating. This shit is a CLASSIC.
Was trash I like only 1 song drake shit more Jon blaze than this shit and. Drake sucks and swallow
HIP-HOP BEATS https://soundcloud.com/streetzmentor
Far from HipHop. Sounds like mainstream bullshit.
i’m not gonna say it’s a classic. i felt like it could have been better but what i do believe is that it can be considered a clssic as time goes on. who knows? but this album didn’t have the same impact illmatic had when it first came out. anybody living in that era knows how big that album was at the time. mind you, you had big and the wu in the same timeframe creating albums and these albums weren’t trash. they ended up becoming big hits and ultimately, classics. not like today. good kid, maad city stands out because the current generation doesn’t really make anything riveting or great. but illmatic stood out in the wake of excellent releases. this is for all the heads who grew up on 90’s hip hop and was a teenager during that time. only you guys can understand this
well said digga
That’s a great way of looking at it and GKMC of course is not better than Illmatic. But that doesn’t take anything away from this album. This generation right now is really stepping up with Kendrick leading the way.
cosign
@ digga
Yeah you pretty much nailed it on the head.
Great article/interview. Nas is intelligent and shows respect where it’s needed. Not a very common characteristic in hip-hop.
If he’s so intelligent why did he:
Marry Kelis
Ignore his daughter while she was whoring it up
Do a song with Tyga
Forget how to go platinum
Make the movie Belly
Nas hit it on the nail when talking about the GKMC and Illmatic comparisons. Folks are always trying to compare greats right now to past legends whether it’s music or sports. Good Kid, Maad City is it’s own classic just like Illmatic.
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Gkmc
albert einstein
Reloaded
grief pedigree
4 recent albums with classic material
lol albert einstein sucked that new mobb deep album is a banger tho
Im cool with that but we churn that album out on the reg
Roc marci tho>>>>>>>>>>>>
You need serious help lol Those first two are shit and you know it.
Nas has to know because after Illmatic, she was all trash until Jay Z put some pressure on the boy to make bring back out the pad and pen and drop some real songs
Kendrick Lamar is a cheap ripp off of Outkast’s flow. The nigga has bitten the whole outkast shit.
Never go full retard.
gkmc is most definitely the illmatic of this era
not a kendrick fan but this is true, gkmc is a masterpiece.
I’d even say that gkmc >>> illmatic
good kid maad city deserves everything, I’m glad its already on all these “best albums of all time lists”
kendrick is that nigga, he reminds me of Pac
Minus the presence, the shady past, the tendency to do dirt, the movie roles, and diamond album sales.
Fuck EVERYONE IN THE FUCKING COMMENTS
Illmatic lightyears ahead of GKMC, SmH at you nigga comparing a shitty album to ILLMATIC
Lightyears away, but made in 94′
K. Dot going to drop another heater. For more entertaining videos Yall Should Visit (Thegrandreport,com) They Have Some Good ones on there too
first of all good kid maad city is not a classic.
it’s the only classic of the last 4 years idiot.
I’m not even a fan but it is a classic.
it definitely is a classic lol
I wonder if gkmc wil lbe topepd this decade.. I don’t think so
the sad thing is that gkmc is probably the only classic album of the last 5 years, gkmc & mbdtf.
this album will definitely go down as one of the biggest masterpieces in music history
youre right man number 1 album of all time in all genres best thing on the planet huh
glad this album is already considered as top 50 hip hop of all time, it’s well earned.
I can unerstand gkmc being a classic but illmatic ? lol shit is dust now.
Are you serious right now? Illmatic is one of the Greatest Hip Hop Albums of all time and will always be a classic. Just because it aint popular today doesnt mean it aint a classic. Get educated fool.
you must have missed the massive 20 year celebrations all over everywhere i guess.
gkmc is most definitely a classic but illmatic is dust now, ain’t nobody playing that shit.
Illmatic is a classic, it was written is nas best album, gkmc is boring as fuck
GKMC is not boring. That shit is also a classic.
gkmc is boring
No, it ain’t.
Kendrick will be remembered, thats for sure.
For having big ears.
And talent.
HA, AND DRAKE CALLS HIMSELF KING? NAS DEF DIDNT CO SIGN HIS SHIT! LOL ITS ABOUT HIP HOP .. LYRIKS. DRAKE CAN SPIT NOT GOING TO HATE.. BUT NO WHERE IS HE IN THE SAME LEVEL AS KDOT! BUT KDOT NEEDS TO BRING IT .. DONT BE MUMBLING SHIT LOL FUK THAT .. BETTER BE ON HIS EM STATUS.. WORD PLAY AND LYRIKS IS WHAT IM LISTENING TOO
Writing in Caps make people not want to read everything you type. So I skipped over it and gave you this message. lol
LOL…this nigga kendrick sound like an alien. Classic album my ass. WACK MOTHERFUCKER.
Said by no one ever.
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Not even close
nas advise yourself first. where’s ur career. when was the last time u released a gold selling album. 2006. that was 8 yrs ago, fool.
In hip-hop where the new fans don’t have any respect for the vets. Oh it’s been 8 years you’re irrelevant. Meanwhile U2 and Rolling Stones are selling out concerts. This culture has gone to shit
lmaoooo Nas lost
bruh fuck sales. his laast project was classic grown up material. sheep don’t appreciate it cus it aint gotta a plat plaque next to it. foh fuck boy
He ain’t changing shit. His album was a fucking bore, and the sales were subpar for all the hype and money poured into it.
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kendrick lamar is garbage compared to nas
everyone is garbage compared to nas. but for today’s music, kendrick lamar is the best doing it.
kendrick lamar is one of the wackest shittiest rap artists in rap history u cant be serious he is mad overrated dude dont bring a damn thing to the table come on now he dont even come close to nas nas is one of the illist mcs to ever bless a mic thats like comparing krsone to vanilla ice
you sound like a fucking fool right now hating ass
Kendrick ain’t shit compared to Nas…
Kendrick >>>nas
gkmc is the only classic album of the last 8 years.
when I listen to gkmc, I feel like I listne to an album made by Jesus himself
This album will go down as one of the best albums of all time for any genre just like Illmatic, Reasonable Doubt, Ready to Die and the other rap albums that are considered the best of all time. When those albums came out we didn’t understand how great they because were very young at the time. Now we have a chance to witness a classic and a legend in the making. The storytelling is amazing. It’s like a movie. You can’t just listen to a couple of songs or skip through. You have to listen straight through from beginning to end..
listening to this really makes the other albums sound alot more like mixtapes
This album is ahead of its time. Perfection from start to finish.
The best hip-hop debut since Lupe Fiasco’s Food & Liquor.
damn kendrick already got 2 certified classics under his belt 😮
Pac died at 25. Kendrick starts to carry the throne at 25 should be some good years to come
He can’t even outsell Drake. He’s the hip hop waterboy.
Yet he outsold many other rappers. You don’t have to have the best sales to be the best rapper. And KDot ain’t no waterboy, that describes rappers who can’t sell shit.
Looks like Aftermath got another classic “2001” , “The Marshall Mathers LP”, “Get Rich or Die Tryin”, now “good kid, m.A.A.d city”
Definitely well deserved. I think Kendrick just fucked the industry up with this one. It’s more like a chapter in the autobiography of Compton.
CLASSIC
one of the msot complete, complex & structured albums I have heard in my whole life, props kendrick !
gkmc = reasonable doubt >>> illmatic
Fuk off
gkmc will probably end being #1 or #2 on every “best albums of the 2010s”
it is that good
Amazing album. When I listen to it, it was more than music, it was a story of a person just like me with dreams, fear, dangers, trouble, happiness, adolescence and maturity. He stayed true to his roots he kept it original but different. God bless Kendrick Lamar and hip hop.
Good god, I havent heard an album like this in a GOOD minute. I will actually purchase this rather than download it. If hip hop artist pumped out more stuff like this, labels could move units like it was ’98….
Good Kid M.A.A.d city one word. Outstanding. Masterfully put together, tight flows, manner of delivery of sometimes morbid content done in a socially acceptable manner, this album appeals to not only dedicated hip-hop fans but also the passive ‘hip-pop’ chart listeners. It is evident this album is meant to be the gate-way drug if you will to the world of alternative hip-hop music (You know, the plethora of hip-hop music hardly recognised by anyone outside of the Youtube community) with tracks such as ‘Swimming Pools’ and ‘the recipe’ speaking to the apathetic weed smoking indie/ hipster/ neo-hippy playstation generation and for the time being It would be hard to refute the claim that Lamar is primarily an alternative hip-hop artist. Akin to what is expected of A$AP Rocky’s impending debut, the overall sound of this album is so different to what has came before. Take for example ‘Sing about me’ and its smooth jazz like sound or ‘Sherane’ which can only be described as possessing a strange alien undertone. It reminds me of the progressive rock music of the seventies, Could Lamar be to Alt Rap what Pink Floyd was to Prog Rock? Only time will tell but the cynic in me is screaming that this may be the prerequisite to another rapper turned chart mule i.e making alot of noise to get attention and then being obedient to the time tested formula of making a shit load of money as we have seen so many times before. However, I would leave this notion to pure speculation for the time being as what Lamar seems to be doing and what GKMC is representing is nothing less than the progression of rap music and I am excited at the possibility of what this could mean.
Good Kid M.A.A.d city one word. Outstanding. Masterfully put together, tight flows, manner of delivery of sometimes morbid content done in a socially acceptable manner, this album appeals to not only dedicated hip-hop fans but also the passive ‘hip-pop’ chart listeners. It is evident this album is meant to be the gate-way drug if you will to the world of alternative hip-hop music (You know, the plethora of hip-hop music hardly recognised by anyone outside of the Youtube community) with tracks such as ‘Swimming Pools’ and ‘the recipe’ speaking to the apathetic weed smoking indie/ hipster/ neo-hippy playstation generation and for the time being It would be hard to refute the claim that Lamar is primarily an alternative hip-hop artist. Akin to what is expected of A$AP Rocky’s impending debut, the overall sound of this album is so different to what has came before. Take for example ‘Sing about me’ and its smooth jazz like sound or ‘Sherane’ which can only be described as possessing a strange alien undertone. It reminds me of the progressive rock music of the seventies, Could Lamar be to Alt Rap what Pink Floyd was to Prog Rock? Only time will tell but the cynic in me is screaming that this may be the prerequisite to another rapper turned chart mule i.e making alot of noise to get attention and then being obedient to the time tested formula of making a shit load of money as we have seen so many times before. However, I would leave this notion to pure speculation for the time being as what Lamar seems to be doing and what GKMC is representing is nothing less than the progression of rap music and I am excited at the possibility of what this could mean..
this album is the definition of perfection
We need more rappers like kendrick.. for the sake of this hip hop genre.
Kendrick reminds me a lot of Nas, the nas we had in 1994. this guy gonna be remembered for what hes doing
GKMC in 4 words:
Classic
AMAZING
Outstanding
Masterpiece
I’m glad it’s already on every “best albums of all time (in any genre)” list because it is that good
will this generation ever top gkmc ? I don’t think so.
Kendrick is the Tupac of this decade, that’s for sure. the quality is here, the rapping is here, the intelligence is here.
props to him
Can u weirdos stop with the comparisons? Let kendrick stand on his own 2 pussy
thought it was overrrated but I gave it a listen last week and OH MY GOD, this shit is CRAZY
can’t wait for his next album !
Big Black Cock is your name?
Kendrick Lamar is the albert Einstein of rap, he is a savant who can bring us undeniable classics
More like the Urkel of rap.
No, he’s the Einstein of rap.
Interesting considering K.Dot does not have a classic album yet.
he already has one.
he does.
according to the consensus, he does, and since gkmc is widely considered as the best or 2nd best hip hop album of the 2010s, it’s definitely going down as a classic so we can already call it one.
yeah, he got 2 classics under the belt already.
he already has 1 and and a potential other classic with section 80.
kendrick might be the only artist of the last 3 years with a classic under his belt, interesting..
gkmc is most definitely the illmatic of this generation, same praise, etc
its crazy when you think about it, he already has 1 cemented hip hop classic and s80 might go down as his 2nd classic with time
this kid is impressive
I think it’s accurate to call him the king, hes the only new schoool rapper who dropped a classic album 1st try.
considereing gkmc is his illmatic (and the illmatic of this decade), I wonder if he can deliver again with his next album…
thes the messiah
Just wondering what Nas has done exactly to get such respect as the king of ny title , as far as I know his resume is lightweight and he hasn’t done shit for fucking years…. I get it illmatic was good, but after that?
Not sure he seems to be above average at best, no god, no king of new york
Both of y’all went full retard. NEVER go full retard.
Illmatic was stale horse shit, and since he had maybe 1 good album (God’s Son).
Kill yourself for the bullshit lies you speak.
I guess Life Is Good which is a phenomenal album he released a little while ago and has much respect from music listeners means nothing to you.
Good advice from a OG in the game to give to Kdot…excited 2 see what Kendrick gon’ follow up with tho…
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Kendrick sold a mil plus without whitey backing like iggy tricking people to think he hot
Pay attention bitches
Then why did he do a song with Robin Thicke?
He said he sold a million without a white artist on his shit. Robin Thicke had nothing to do with it.
Heads came outta nowhere to make sure son certified
Pay attention bitches