HHH Essential Album of the Week #113: Nas - It Was Written - HipHop | HipHop Channel

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HHH Essential Album of the Week #113: Nas - It Was Written - HipHop

HHH Essential Album of the Week #113: Nas - It Was Written - HipHop

HHH Essential Album of the Week #113: Nas - It Was Written

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 11:32 PM PDT

Every Wednesday we will discuss an album from our Essential Albums list

Last Time: Jay-Z - Reasonable Doubt

This Week: Nas - It Was Written

All Previous Posts: here (this is also viewable by clicking 'Essential Album of the Week' in the 'Recurring Threads' section of the sidebar)

Stream/Purchase

Spotify

Tidal

Background/Description

Nas' sophomore album It Was Written was released on July 2, 1996 on Columbia Records. Following the moderate sales success of Illmatic, Nas chose to focus his efforts in a more mainstream direction. Primarily produced by Trackmasters (along with Dr. Dre, DJ Premier and Havoc of Mobb Deep), it is a departure from the raw, underground tone of his debut album towards a more polished, mainstream sound. The album features mafioso and gangsta themes, and marks the first appearance of Nas' short-lived supergroup The Firm, which included Foxy Brown, AZ, and Cormega.

It Was Written has Nas experimenting with a theatrical mafioso concept under the alias of "Nas Escobar". Nas' lyricism and ghetto-themed vignettes reach its peak at certain points of the album, however many critics and fans perceived Nas' violent, fantastical mafioso stories as lacking the emotion and truthfulness of his debut album. This is clear on tracks like the ill-conceived Dr. Dre produced Nas is Coming, Watch Dem Niggas, and Take It in Blood, which drew criticisms from critics and fans alike.

Despite this, It Was Written birthed several of the strongest tracks of Nas' long career, including opening track The Message (a homage to Grandmaster Flash's The Message), the DJ Premier produced I Gave You Power (a first person narration from the perspective of a gun), Street Dreams, the Lauryn Hill featured If I Ruled the World (Imagine That) and bonus track Silent Murder.

While the attempts at mass appeal drew initial criticism and backlash, Nas' vivid lyrics and effortless rhyming cuts through the commercial sheen. Combined with the spare but deep grooves, his rhymes have a resonance unmatched by most of his mid-'90s contemporaries.

Guidelines

This is an open thread for you to share your thoughts on the album. Avoid vague statements of praise or criticism. This is your chance to practice being a critic. It's fine for you to drop by just to say you love the album, but let's try and step it up a bit!!!

How has this album affected hip-hop? WHY do you like this tape? What are the best tracks? Do you think it deserves the praise it gets? Is it the first time you've listened to it? What's your first impression? Have you listened to the artist before? Explain why you like it or why you don't.

DON'T FEEL BAD ABOUT BEING LATE!!!! Discussion throughout the week is encouraged.

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Daily Discussion Thread 04/07/2020

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 04:20 PM PDT

Welcome to the /r/hiphopheads daily discussion thread!

This thread is for:

  • objective questions with right/wrong answers (e.g. "Does anyone know what is happening with MIXTAPE?", "What is the sample in SONG?")
  • general hip-hop discussion
  • meta posts...e.g. ideas for the sub

Thread Guidelines

  • Do not create a separate self post for these types of discussions outside of this thread - if you do, your post will be removed, as stated in the guidelines.

  • Please be helpful and friendly.

  • If a question has been asked many times before, provide a link to a thread that contains the answer.

Weekly/Monthly Threads

Other ways to interact

There are a number of other ways to interact with other members of HHH:

New to /r/hiphopheads or hip-hop in general?

Check out these:

submitted by /u/ModsLittleHelper
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R. Kelly’s Bid For Coronavirus Release Denied

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 08:51 AM PDT

Future announces new album Life Is Good in XXL interview

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 12:12 PM PDT

[FRESH VIDEO] The Weeknd - Until I Bleed Out

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 09:04 AM PDT

[OC] A guide to The Alchemist and his contributions to the Hip-Hop Genre

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 10:54 AM PDT

Since we all have some more time on our hands, I thought I would do a write up on The Alchemist, and his immense contributions to Hip Hop over the past 25 years (inspired by the skit at the end of "Grand Concourse Benches" ft. KRS-One from Al's Chemical Warfare).

The Alchemist's long career in hip-hop began in 1991, when, at 14, he formed The Whooliganz, a hip-hop duo with Scott Caan (yes, that guy from Entourage and the Hawaii Five-0 reboot) that got the attention of B-Real of Cypress Hill at a party in LA. After recording an unsuccessful single for Tommy Boy Records in 1993, Caan moved on to acting and Al became interested in hip hop production (it's worth noting that The Whooliganz reunite on the track "Byron G", from the 2014 album Lord Steppington by The Alchemist and Evidence).

Despite the failure of The Whooliganz, Al's friendship with B-Real led to him meeting DJ Muggs, who took Al under his wing and taught him to produce hip hop records. Over the next few years (1994-1997), Al honed his skills as a beatmaker under DJ Mugg's guidance, until his first production credit on Dilated Peoples' single "Third Degree" in 1997 (the lyrics page includes a quote from the Alchemist about making this track). With the endorsement of Dilated People, Al became well-known in underground LA hip-hop circles, leading to him touring with Freddie Foxxx, Cypress Hill, M.O.P., and GangStarr in 1999.

After the tour, Al relocated to New York for school, where Muggs insisted he meet with Mobb Deep's crew, who would go on to become Al's most prominent collaborators. Al describes this encounter in an episode of B-Reals 'The Smokebox', where he states, "when I moved to New York, Muggs had met Infamous Mobb, which were Mobb Deep's homies, and Muggs was like, 'Yo, you gotta hook up with them 'cause you're our little homie and that's their little homies.' So I hooked up with Infamous Mobb first." From this meeting, Al told Complex, ""They're not the type of crew who would take to new people, I saw that right away." Despite this, they took kindly to Al, and introduced him to Prodigy and Havoc of Mobb Deep. Al was woken up one late night by a call from Prodigy, telling him to come by the studio to play him and Havoc some beats. Al recalls, "I literally threw my ASR in the fucking case and got a cab and went to the studio and when I got there, G Rap was sitting there". This session led to the creation of "The Realest", off Mobb Deep's fourth studio album, Murda Muzik, released in 1999.

This song put Alchemist into the mainstream, and from there he worked with nearly every prominent rapper from the 2000s and 2010s. He's also Eminem's official DJ and an in-house producer for Shady Records. Here's a list of some of his most prominent production credits, in order of release (I know I'm missing tons of classics, but these are IMO the biggest names he's collaborated with - here is a conclusive list, drop more of your favorites in the comments).

Pharaoh Monch - "No Mercy"

Big Pun - "Mamma"

Guru - "In Here"

Jadakiss - "We Gon' Make It"

Fat Joe - "Definition of a Don"

Ghostface Killah - "The Forest"

Nas - "My Way"

Snoop Dogg - "Hey You"

Big Daddy Kane - "The Man, The Icon"

Diamond D - "Y'all Niggaz Need to Know"

Cam'ron - "Wet Wipes"

Lil Wayne - "You Ain't Got Nothing"

Raekwon - "Surgical Gloves"

Inspectah Deck - "The Champion"

Rick Ross - "Perfectionist"

Sean Price - "Bar-Barian"

Mac Miller - "Red Dot Music"

Joey Bada$$ - "Trap Door"

Schoolboy Q - "Break the Bank"

Action Bronson - "Terry"

Migos & Mac Miller - "Jabroni"

Danny Brown - "White Lines"

Kendrick Lamar - "FEAR."

MF DOOM - "DOOMSAYERS"

Anderson .Paak - "Make it Better"

Earl Sweatshirt - "MTOMB"

Eminem - "Stepdad"

Jay Electronica & Jay Z - "The Neverending Story"

Further, his work with less prominent artists is amongst his best - particularly his work with Griselda Records, Roc Marciano, and Boldy James, who compliment Al's grimey production with lyrical street rap. I recommend "Elizabeth" by Westside Gunn, "5 to 50" by Benny the Butcher, and "Calvin" by Conway the Machine.

Al's solo work is also incredibly strong - if you like instrumentals I recommend the Rapper's Best Friend series - five albums of Alchemist instrumentals used by rappers on their own projects. His debut album 1st Infantry features famous tracks like "Hold You Down" with Prodigy and Nina Sky, and "Tick, Tock" featuring Prodigy and Nas. His second album Chemical Warfare is full of great guest verses from the likes of Kool G Rap ("ALC Theme"), Eminem ("Chemical Warfare"), Pusha-T ("Lose Ya Life"), and Talib Kweli ("Therapy"), amongst others. Further, his LP Russian Roulette is full of samples taken from Russian music, and features the cut "Flight Confirmation" ft. Danny Brown and Schoolboy Q.

Beyond this, Alchemist has proved himself to be a competent executive producer, releasing numerous collaboration albums over the course of his career including:

Multiple albums with Oh No! under the moniker Gangrene (I recommend Vodka & Ayahuasca)

Curren$y - Covert Coup

Domo Genesis - No Idols

Action Bronson - Rare Chandeliers

Willie the Kid - Masterpiece Theatre

Step Brothers - Lord Steppington; collaborative effort between the Alchemist and Evidence of Dilated Peoples

Prodigy - Albert Einstein: P=mc2

Gangrene - Welcome to Los Santos - music produced and curated by Gangrene for the video game Grand Theft Auto V

The Alchemist and Budgie - The Good Book (Gospel Project)

Havoc & The Alchemist - The Silent Partner

Curren$y, Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist - Fetti

Action Bronson & The Alchemist - Lamb Over Rice

Boldy James & The Alchemist - The Price of Tea in China

Conway the Machine & The Alchemist - LULU

This ended up being much longer than I meant for it to be, but hopefully it sheds some light on the Alchemist's history and his contributions to the genre. His work ethic and staying power is unmatched. He's been working with fresh new acts and old school rappers for 20 years. He produces. He raps. Put simply, The Alchemist is a hip-hop legend, and right up there with DJ Premier as one of the greatest producers of all time. None of these lists are conclusive, and there's a ridiculous amount of music I didn't have the space to talk about in this post. Look up The Alchemist + you favorite rapper and you'll probably find some of their best work.

Bonus Videos:

The Alchemist & Prodigy In the Studio Making Hold You Down

The Alchemist - The Chemistry Files: The DVD: The Uncut Version (Pt.1)

Alchemist in the studio w/ Prodigy CHEMICAL WARFARE 7.7.09

Alchemist - Secret Sauce (Behind The Beat Video + Alchemist Drum Kit)

KENNY BEATS + ALCHEMIST + BOLDY JAMES FREESTYLE | The Cave: Season 2 - Episode 10

Edit: Thanks for the kind words everyone :) made my day. May try and put something like this together for other producers (probably Preemo next)

submitted by /u/Tape_measure
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Master P offers free home cleanings and hand sanitizer to senior citizens in New Orleans

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 08:51 PM PDT

[FRESH ALBUM] Bladee - EXETER

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 03:00 PM PDT

[FRESH] Aesop Rock - Drums On The Wheel (Official Video)

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 09:45 AM PDT

Eminem - The Kids

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 07:14 PM PDT

[FRESH] Jean Deaux feat. Saba - Moody!

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 09:33 PM PDT

A$AP Mob - Trillmatic (Explicit) (Official Music Video) ft. A$AP Nast, Method Man

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 08:01 PM PDT

Abhi the Nomad and Shamir are musical guests on Bernie Sander's livestream "The Impact of Coronavirus on African Americans" happening right now

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 04:16 PM PDT

Top Ten Tuesday: Childish Gambino

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 12:38 PM PDT

Here's how this works:

• One song per comment.

• The thread will be put into contest mode (randomized comment order).

• Upvote the songs you like.

• Please don't downvote!

• Search/use ctrl+f to see if anyone posted the song already.

• Try to limit yourself to posting one or two songs.

• Please post a link with your song.

• The 10 songs with the most upvotes will be HHH Top Ten.

• Have fun!

Here is is our spreadsheet with all past results, made by /u/elektrikg33k.

Our upcoming schedule:

04/07/20 - Childish Gambino

04/21/20 - Lil Uzi Vert

05/05/20 - Anderson .Paak

────────

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childish_Gambino_discography

please take 5 seconds to ctrl+f the thread to see your song has already been posted

we've officially on a bi-weekly schedule

and as always pm me if you want to see a certain artist here

submitted by /u/nd20
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88GLAM delays the release of their new album

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 11:30 AM PDT

Per Instagram

It looks like it's because of COVID-19 but I'm not sure if their rumored label troubles with XO has anything to do with it

submitted by /u/hoodiebrando
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Benny The Butcher - Goodnight

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 10:45 AM PDT

[FRESH] Quadeca - WHERE’D YOU GO

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 09:17 PM PDT

[FRESH VIDEO] BlocBoy JB “Out West” Freestyle

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 10:31 AM PDT

Lil Wayne interview with former NBA players Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes | ALL THE SMOKE Podcast

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 10:49 AM PDT

Ludacris - Diamonds in the Back (Official Video)

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 05:42 PM PDT

Billboard Hot 100 Discussion - April 5-11 2020

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 09:06 AM PDT

Billboard Hot 100 chart

Position Title Artist ▲/▼ Last week Weeks Charting Peak
1 Blinding Lights The Weeknd - 1 18 1
2 The Box Roddy Ricch - 2 17 1
3 Don't Start Now Dua Lipa - 3 22 2
4 Circles Post Malone ▲+1 5 31 1
5 Life Is Good Future Featuring Drake ▲+1 6 12 2
6 Adore You Harry Styles ▲+1 7 17 6
7 Say So Doja Cat ▲+2 9 13 7
8 Intentions Justin Bieber Featuring Quavo - 8 8 8
9 everything i wanted Billie Eilish ▲+3 12 21 8
10 Someone You Loved Lewis Capaldi ▲+1 11 47 1
11 Roxanne Arizona Zervas ▼-1 10 22 4
12 Heartless The Weeknd ▼-8 4 19 1
13 Memories Maroon 5 ▲+1 14 28 2
14 The Bones Maren Morris ▲+3 17 28 14
15 My Oh My Camila Cabello Featuring DaBaby ▲+3 18 17 15
16 Hot Girl Bummer blackbear ▼-3 13 29 11
17 Turks NAV, Gunna & Travis Scott ▲+84 [FRESH] 1 17
18 Savage Megan Thee Stallion ▲+2 20 3 18
19 Blueberry Faygo Lil Mosey ▲+18 37 8 19
20 Dance Monkey Tones And I ▼-5 15 26 4
21 Break My Heart Dua Lipa ▲+80 [FRESH] 1 21
22 I Hope Gabby Barrett ▲+8 30 14 22
23 BELIEVE IT PARTYNEXTDOOR & Rihanna ▲+78 [FRESH] 1 23
24 Ballin' Mustard & Roddy Ricch ▼-1 23 37 11
25 Falling Trevor Daniel ▲+4 29 20 25
26 RITMO (Bad Boys For Life) The Black Eyed Peas X J Balvin - 26 19 26
27 Stupid Love Lady Gaga - 27 5 5
28 10,000 Hours Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber ▼-9 19 26 4
29 BOP DaBaby ▲+2 31 27 11
30 Heart On Ice Rod Wave ▲+13 43 21 30
31 High Fashion Roddy Ricch Featuring Mustard ▲+5 36 14 20
32 Nobody But You Blake Shelton Duet With Gwen Stefani ▲+12 44 12 32
33 Suicidal YNW Melly & Juice WRLD ▲+2 35 18 20
34 You should be sad Halsey ▼-1 33 12 26
35 No Guidance Chris Brown Featuring Drake ▼-1 34 43 5
36 Chasin' You Morgan Wallen ▲+17 53 10 36
37 Slow Dance In A Parking Lot Jordan Davis ▲+12 49 13 37
38 Homesick Kane Brown ▲+2 40 20 35
39 Roses (Imanbek Remix) SAINt JHN ▲+16 55 2 39
40 Catch Brett Young ▲+21 61 10 40
41 I Love Me Demi Lovato ▲+7 48 4 18
42 In Your Eyes The Weeknd ▼-26 16 2 16
43 death bed Powfu Featuring beabadoobee ▲+16 59 3 43
44 More Hearts Than Mine Ingrid Andress ▲+12 56 14 44
45 Slide H.E.R. Featuring YG ▲+6 51 15 45
46 Woah Lil Baby ▼-4 42 21 15
47 Godzilla Eminem Featuring Juice WRLD ▼-9 38 11 3
48 BEST ON EARTH Russ & BIA ▲+4 52 17 46
49 WHATS POPPIN Jack Harlow ▲+8 57 8 48
50 What She Wants Tonight Luke Bryan ▼-4 46 15 46
51 Homemade Jake Owen ▼-1 50 10 39
52 Sunday Best Surfaces ▲+10 62 5 52
53 Yo Perreo Sola Bad Bunny ▲+48 [FRESH] 3 53
54 Dior Pop Smoke ▲+4 58 7 30
55 Sum 2 Prove Lil Baby ▲+5 60 12 16
56 Beer Can't Fix Thomas Rhett Featuring Jon Pardi ▲+12 68 3 56
57 Walk Em Down NLE Choppa Featuring Roddy Ricch ▲+37 94 2 57
58 I Hope You're Happy Now Carly Pearce & Lee Brice ▲+6 64 13 58
59 Does To Me Luke Combs Featuring Eric Church ▲+4 63 3 59
60 Loyal PARTYNEXTDOOR Featuring Drake ▲+41 [FRESH] 3 60
61 After Hours The Weeknd ▼-39 22 6 20
62 Supalonely BENEE Featuring Gus Dapperton ▲+9 71 3 62
63 Myron Lil Uzi Vert ▼-9 54 3 13
64 Tusa Karol G & Nicki Minaj ▲+2 66 18 42
65 P*$$y Fairy (OTW) Jhene Aiko ▲+2 67 11 40
66 Before You Go Lewis Capaldi ▲+11 77 9 66
67 Come Thru Summer Walker & Usher ▲+21 88 14 42
68 Heartless Diplo Presents Thomas Wesley Featuring Morgan Wallen ▲+22 90 10 68
69 Underdog Alicia Keys ▲+32 [FRESH] 2 69
70 The Other Side SZA X Justin Timberlake ▲+9 79 5 61
71 Know Your Worth Khalid x Disclosure ▲+11 82 8 57
72 OUT WEST JACKBOYS Featuring Young Thug ▲+6 78 12 38
73 Emotionally Scarred Lil Baby ▲+16 89 5 31
74 Oprah's Bank Account Lil Yachty, Drake & DaBaby ▲+1 75 4 55
75 P2 Lil Uzi Vert ▼-5 70 4 11
76 B.I.T.C.H. Megan Thee Stallion ▲+5 81 8 31
77 Physical Dua Lipa ▲+24 [FRESH] 2 60
78 After A Few Travis Denning ▲+23 [FRESH] 1 78
79 That Way Lil Uzi Vert ▼-6 73 5 20
80 B.S. Jhene Aiko Featuring H.E.R. ▼-4 76 4 24
81 I Love My Country Florida Georgia Line ▲+20 [FRESH] 1 81
82 Grace Lil Baby & 42 Dugg ▲+3 85 5 48
83 Make No Sense YoungBoy Never Broke Again ▲+13 96 20 57
84 Yummy Justin Bieber ▼-1 83 13 2
85 Save Your Tears The Weeknd ▼-44 41 2 41
86 Safaera Bad Bunny, Jowell & Randy & Nengo Flow ▲+15 [FRESH] 3 81
87 La Dificil Bad Bunny ▲+13 100 5 33
88 Ridin' Roads Dustin Lynch ▲+13 [FRESH] 18 47
89 Si Veo A Tu Mama Bad Bunny ▲+3 92 5 32
90 The Man Taylor Swift ▲+11 [FRESH] 6 23
91 Hard To Forget Sam Hunt ▲+10 [FRESH] 1 91
92 Go Stupid Polo G Featuring NLE Choppa & Stunna 4 Vegas ▲+6 98 7 60
93 Last Time I Say Sorry Kane Brown & John Legend ▲+8 [FRESH] 1 93
94 What A Man Gotta Do Jonas Brothers ▼-22 72 11 16
95 Heatin Up Lil Baby & Gunna ▼-4 91 5 18
96 If The World Was Ending JP Saxe Featuring Julia Michaels ▲+5 [FRESH] 1 96
97 Vete Bad Bunny ▲+2 99 18 33
98 Baby Pluto Lil Uzi Vert ▼-24 74 4 6
99 Into The Unknown Idina Menzel & AURORA ▼-2 97 12 46
100 July Noah Cyrus Featuring Leon Bridges ▲+1 [FRESH] 5 91

Notes

  • Nav & Gunna - Turks (ft. Travis Scott) debuts at 17
  • PARTYNEXTDOOR - BELIEVE IT (ft. Rihanna) debuts at 23

Billboard 200 chart

Position Title Artist Sales Change Last week Weeks Charting
1 After Hours The Weeknd 134,905 (47,545 pure) -70% 1 2
2 C A L M 5 Seconds Of Summer 132,349 (113,582 pure) -- 62 2
3 Eternal Atake Lil Uzi Vert 79,186 (809 pure) -32% 2 4
4 Future Nostalgia Dua Lipa 62,611 (17,439 pure) -- [FRESH] 1
5 Gigaton Pearl Jam 61,915 (55,316 pure) -- [FRESH] 1
6 My Turn Lil Baby 49,039 (1,279 pure) -12% 3 5
7 YHLQMDLG Bad Bunny 46,331 (1,294 pure) -6% 4 5
8 PARTYMOBILE PARTYNEXTDOOR 52,237 (3,061 pure) -- [FRESH] 1
9 Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial Roddy Ricch 38,400 (10,144 pure) -- 6 17
10 ADHD Joyner Lucas 35,827 (356 pure) -10% [FRESH] 1
submitted by /u/RobYaLunch
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Ghostface Killah - Big Girl

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 06:55 PM PDT

2Pac - One Day At A Time (feat. Eminem & The Outlawz)

Posted: 08 Apr 2020 12:49 AM PDT

Earl Sweatshirt - Dat Ass

Posted: 08 Apr 2020 12:38 AM PDT

[FRESH] Pink Siifu - ,NEGRO

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 02:29 PM PDT

Fred The Godson has COVID-19 and is currently in hospital on oxygen

Posted: 07 Apr 2020 02:47 AM PDT

Instagram post from Fred confirming it.

I really hope he can pull through this along with Klass Murda (who also has it). Sweet Nothings (feat. Klass Murda) is an incredible track with both artists on it.

submitted by /u/AudioCinematic
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