Released: August 12, 2016

Featuring: Mr. Books

I came from the city
Yeah, got my name from the city
Where? The most dangerous city
Let's take a trip back, back into time
1977, it was maximum crime
The President neglected us, him and 6 masterminds
6 powerful men put New York through some drastic times
The rich and selfish ones, feed off the welfare ones
And which borough suffered the worst? Hmm, where I'm from
The Bronx
We had to rumble with rivals on the rubble
While buildings around us would crumble
I dreamed right but it seemed like nothin' found me but trouble
I see the light, it's right there at the end of the tunnel
Had to find my rope, to pull me up
Cause I needed some kind of hope, to fill me up
'Til I met one guy, took me under the wing
I could have died if this man ain't intervene
He was an orphan, my savior, free spirited
No man braver, he was honored and gifted
His name was Shaolin Fantastic, the lady-killin' romantic
Can't forget the day we met, and this story recants it
But yo my life began last year, sophomore of high school
That summer I saw her, said to myself, "She'll be my wife soon"

Nas

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, known to one and all as Nas, is one of hip-hop’s best-known, most mercurial, and lyrically blessed figures ever to touch the microphone. Since his heart-stopping debut turn on Main Source’s “Live at the Barbeque,” Nas has delivered countless beautifully structured, thought-provoking, keenly observed verses.

Growing up in Queens, NY, Nas never really performed in big crowds—he kept to himself. Nas used a different type of vernacular that others didn’t understand, which helped him to stand out from other rappers from his era.

With every ensuing album, Nas always reminds fans that he’s still the same Queensbridge MC who crafted one of the greatest albums of all time, and arguably the bible of Hip-Hop, Illmatic.