Best Hip Hop Album - Illmatic

Okay, this is one of those albums you can listen to a million times over, and it never gets old. A classic hip hop album, and in my opinion, one of the best hip hop albums ever to grace a turntable, tape player, CD, Mp3, whatever.

Nas, A rapper from Queens, NY, made history with this raw debut consisting of letters to incarcerated comrades (One Love), self examination, old school anthems, and how much of an inconvenience it can be when your mac 10 jams in a shootout (NY State of Mind).

With only one feature on the whole album, Illmatic really gave Nas the chance for people to get acquainted with his style, without big names overshadowing the newcomer.

And it's not like Nas needed any big names. He had just as good a delivery, metaphors, and word play as anyone else out at that time, and even putting most of today's rappers to shame, making us see the sing songy choruses we've gotten so accustomed to hearing for what they are: stupid.

Most of the choruses on the record are simple one or two word gang shouts, like on tracks Represent, One Love, Or Halftime.

But it's in the simplicity that this albums' genius is revealed. The Mixes aren't complicated, there s nothing more than a little delay thrown on the vocals here and there. The instrumental production is raw as hell, and done by some big names, such as Dj Premier, Q Tip, and Pete Rock (not a bad lineup for a newcomer). All around, it embodies a sound that has been lost; Boom bap production, lyricism, the shout chorus, etc.

And the lyricism is like no other. Boasting lines like "puttin' hits on 5-0/'cus when it's my time to go, i'll wait for God with the .44", Nas tears through tracks line by line, the last line hitting eve harder than the one before. He has a almost militant sounding rhetoric on this album, even when he's just talking about taking his gold fronts out before sparking his blunts.

There's something about this album that can't be described through words, it just gives you this feeling of nostalgia, this glance backwards to a time when it wasn't about fancy production and catchy hooks. It has this no bullshit attitude about it, but with a very poetic delivery. Hard as hell, but showing sensitivity all at the same time. This has to be the most literal translation of an album being able to take you into someone else's' world.

This album is not just an old school classic, not just a classic hip hop album, but a piece of history. This is an example of taking a genre of music to the next level.

Illmatic is sure to be shaking trunks and breaking ear drums for years to come.