Some Dreams Stay Dreams, Some Dreams Come True

I have to admit right off the top that I've never been the Ace #1 Nas fan on the planet. Can he rhyme: no doubt. Do I respect his swagger: no question. But for reasons that remain wormhole mysterious he's never been at the top of my personal MC roll call. There's no questioning his status in the game, or the place of Illmatic in the pantheon of rap records but I've always been whatevs when it came to his albums. That being said, Hip Hop Is Dead is an end to end burner without question. Knowing how I came at him before, theres no merit in me giving it the coveted "Best Record Since Illmatic" tag that every other review lays on it. All I can say is that this is the most entertained he's left me since...well...ever. This album is no Illmatic, even a casual and some might say weak-jack, listener like me can tell the difference between a stone cold classic and and a solid late career record. Illmatic might turn up in your college syllabus, Hip Hop Is Dead might turn up in your late night smoke session.

Theres no shortage of yarns spun but of all the cuts on the album I keep coming back to "Still Dreaming" with Kanye West. Whipping up the same colabo chemistry that made "We Major" a stand out on Kanye's album both MCs snuggle up in an understated drum break that stays elevated thanks to the whisper light vocal sample that loops through the song. They lay it on you like a daydream- you get that far off gaze and its like you're really there, till you blink and its over. Indelibly easy.

Nas featuring Kanye West- "Still Dreaming"