When did the "general consensus" for Greatest Album move from Paid In Full to Illmatic?

[blackmagnus514]

I remember Questlove telling a story about how at the 95 Source Awards, Big was winning Everything and getting all the love and Nas was just sitting in his sit, slumped looking tight...
He said that was probably the beginning of It Was Written right there...

if you think about it, it makes a lot of sense ...


Really does...Illmatic just went platinum in like the 2000 i think if we're talking sales

I would say even OB4CL was more of a game changer than Illmatic


I see where youre coming from with this. I heard Jay was heavily bumping this and The Infamous prior to releasing Reasonable Doubt. OB4CL and RTD started that whole visual, cinematic trait a lotta hip hop albums had. OB4CL was based on this Chinese crime flick The Killer (a good flick if you can get your hands on it) so RZA made the album with the same theme of Rae being in the streets and him coming back for one last job.

Ready To Die had elemnets of 36 Chambers being that it was a gutter album but it showed BIGs versatility and ability to cross over with Juicy and One More Chance. BIG was a Wu fan and thats why you hear Rae and Ghost addressing him taking their slang and biting Nas on RTD cover. Tracks like Warning and Suicidal Thoughts play like a movie...then the album segued perfectly into LAD

I dont even think cats even know that BIG wrote in his head till way after the fact and that's what tripped people out. He was a damn good freestyler but to make tracks especially Bad Boy type crossover singles, you need a exceptional talent. Nas, for what its worth, couldnt or didnt do that on Illmatic

 

[kicks off]

Paid In Full.

 

[kicks off]

Paid In Full.

 

[send one]

The only thing disappointing about Illmatic when it came out was its commercial success, or lack of. Fortunately fans back then didn't care about sales. At all. The only ppl who could've been disappointed were the suits over at Colombia.

In 92-93 EVERY critic and publication was heralding Nas as "the second coming of Rakim". Might not seem like much today but back then it was a huge deal. Those were some hefty shoes to fill and son filled them and took off running like they were his.

On Illmatic Nas was still somewhat untainted by the politics of the business. It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

 

[send one]

The only thing disappointing about Illmatic when it came out was its commercial success, or lack of. Fortunately fans back then didn't care about sales. At all. The only ppl who could've been disappointed were the suits over at Colombia.

In 92-93 EVERY critic and publication was heralding Nas as "the second coming of Rakim". Might not seem like much today but back then it was a huge deal. Those were some hefty shoes to fill and son filled them and took off running like they were his.

On Illmatic Nas was still somewhat untainted by the politics of the business. It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

 

[blackmagnus514]

It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.


This.

 

[blackmagnus514]

It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.


This.

 

[ninjahood]

Originally Posted by blackmagnus514

It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

This.
i like nas with a lil extra sugar... hence It Was Written > Illmatic IMO

 

[ninjahood]

Originally Posted by blackmagnus514

It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

This.
i like nas with a lil extra sugar... hence It Was Written > Illmatic IMO

 

[DVMNXK]

Illmatic just sounds pure.

Album of the 1900's.

 

[DVMNXK]

Illmatic just sounds pure.

Album of the 1900's.

 

[yoppa guevara]

the overall lyrical standard in 94' (tribe,big,wu etc) was basically set by rakim in the 80's

 

[yoppa guevara]

the overall lyrical standard in 94' (tribe,big,wu etc) was basically set by rakim in the 80's

 

[illscan]

Originally Posted by illphillip


Cake, I don't know that Illmatic really was a "game changer". It was an INCREDIBLE album, but I'm not sure it really helped define Rap music releases after the fact. 

Disagree....................... The obsession with multiple "superstar" type producer albums became the norm after Illmatic (for better or worse). It was never a selling point before Illmatic dropped.
It's just a normal question to ask, "Who's on on the boards" nowadays in your pre-analysis of a record. As opposed to hearing an album, absorbing it & saying "yo, who did the production on that?" before Nas.

 

[illscan]

Originally Posted by illphillip


Cake, I don't know that Illmatic really was a "game changer". It was an INCREDIBLE album, but I'm not sure it really helped define Rap music releases after the fact. 

Disagree....................... The obsession with multiple "superstar" type producer albums became the norm after Illmatic (for better or worse). It was never a selling point before Illmatic dropped.
It's just a normal question to ask, "Who's on on the boards" nowadays in your pre-analysis of a record. As opposed to hearing an album, absorbing it & saying "yo, who did the production on that?" before Nas.

 

[finessesosa]

Originally Posted by ninjahood

Originally Posted by blackmagnus514

It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

This.

i like nas with a lil extra sugar... hence It Was Written > Illmatic IMO





Me too. The Perfect Nas was It Was Written.

 

[finessesosa]

Originally Posted by ninjahood

Originally Posted by blackmagnus514

It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

This.

i like nas with a lil extra sugar... hence It Was Written > Illmatic IMO





Me too. The Perfect Nas was It Was Written.

 

[deuce king]

Originally Posted by SEND ONE


On Illmatic Nas was still somewhat untainted by the politics of the business. It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

There it is.

  

 

[deuce king]

Originally Posted by SEND ONE


On Illmatic Nas was still somewhat untainted by the politics of the business. It was Nas in his purist form. Thats one of the reasons I say, Illmatic > any other Nas record.

There it is.