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They Say...
For his second album, It Was Written, Nas hired a bunch of hip-hop's biggest producers -- including Dr. Dre, DJ Premier, Stretch, and Trackmasters -- to help him create the musical bed for his daring, groundbreaking rhymes. Although that rhyme style isn't as startling on It Was Written as it was on his debut, Illmatic, Nas has deepened his talents, creating a complex series of rhymes that not only flow, but manage to tell coherent stories as well. Furthermore, Nas often concentrates on creating vignettes about life in the ghetto that never are apolitical or ambivalent. This time around, the production is more detailed and elaborate, which gives the music a wider appeal. Sometimes this is a detriment -- Nas sounds better when he tries to keep it street-level -- but usually, his lyrical force 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. Because, no matter how deep his lyrics are, his grooves are just as deep and those bottomless funk and spare beats are what make It Was Written so compulsively listenable. [It Was Written was released in an edited version with all of the profanity removed.]
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| 01. |  |
Album Intro |
2:28 |
|
| 02. | |
The Message |
3:54 |
|
| 03. | |
Street Dreams |
4:41 |
|
| 04. | |
I Gave You Power |
3:56 |
|
| 05. | |
Watch Dem N&*%$As |
3:58 |
|
| 06. | |
Take It In Blood
|
4:49 |
|
| 07. | |
Nas Is Coming |
5:40 |
|
| 08. | |
Affirmative Action |
4:20 |
|
| 09. | |
The Set Up |
4:01 |
|
| 10. | |
Black Girl Lost |
4:22 |
|
| 11. | |
Suspect |
4:16 |
|
| 12. | |
Shootouts |
3:46 |
|
| 13. | |
Live N&*%$A Rap |
3:46 |
|
| 14. | |
If I Ruled The World (imagine that) |
4:42 |
|
14 Total Tracks, 58:39 Total Length
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Credits
- AZ - Performer // AZ - Performer // AZ - ? // AZ - ? // Dr. Dre - Producer // Foxy Brown - ? // Live Squad - Producer // Nas - Vocals // Nas - Vocals // Nas - Producer // Nas - Producer // Nas - Executive Producer // Nas - Executive Producer // DJ Premier - Producer // Bill Esses - Mixing // Mike Fronda - Mixing // Eddie Sancho - Engineer // Eddie Sancho - Mixing // Richard Travali - Mixing // Kurt Walker - Vocals // Tom Coyne - Mastering // Havoc - Producer // Joel "JoJo" Hailey - Vocals (Background) // Aimee MacAuley - Art Direction // Aimee MacAuley - Design // Dave Atkinson - Keyboards // Dave Atkinson - Producer // Rashad Smith - Producer // Lauryn Hill - Vocals // Lauryn Hill - Vocals // Lauryn Hill - Vocals (Background) // Lauryn Hill - Vocals (Background) // Danny Clinch - Photography // L.E.S. - Producer // Poke & Tone - Producer // Poke & Tone - Mixing // DJ Kid Capri - Scratching // Kirk Goddy - Producer // Ken "Duro" Ifle - Vocals // Ken "Duro" Ifle - Mixing // Steve Stoute - Executive Producer // The Firm - ? // Cormega - Performer // Cormega - ? // Trackmasters - Producer // Trackmasters - Executive Producer // Kelston Rice - Engineer // Delight - Keyboards
-
Other Details
- Instrument:
- Electronic Drums
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