NASIR

Nas - NASIR
Critic Score
Based on 19 reviews
2018 Ratings: #825 / 890
User Score
2018 Rank: #652
Liked by 66 people
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CRITIC REVIEWS

90
Highsnobiety

Taken at face value, NASIR is an incredible artistic achievement.

80
musicOMH

There are some slight missteps, like West’s tedious hook on Everything, but Nasir proves Nas’ ongoing relevance as one of New York’s biggest living rappers, with the best overall production and best quality control since Illmatic: the curse may finally be lifting.

80
XXL

A project that wavers between brilliant synergy and occasionally uninspired filler.

78
GIGsoup
Honestly, Nas is still a Hip Hop legend and like most of our idols of 90s to early 2000s Hip-Hop, it’s simply a victory lap.
76
HipHopDX

When you factor in all its dexterity, randomness and overall generality, it’s hard to truly believe NASIR was the album he had been cerebrally building these past six years.

70
Albumism

Comprised of mostly good music, even in its flaws, NASIR leaves listeners intrigued as to the possibilities of its author’s next chapter.

67
A.V. Club

For a 26-minute effort, Nasir has too much slack.

61
Pitchfork

No longer able to summon his mythical sense of storytelling, Nas sounds lost on his 11th studio album. Kanye’s production doesn’t help, either.

60
NME

Whilst stylistically Nasir may well have plenty of strong moments, its contradictions make it a difficult, problematic listen: it’s the silences on here which so often deafen.

60
The Guardian

The real issue with Nasir is Nas, who seems to have taken it upon himself to become as mercurial as his producer, his rhymes shifting from acute, powerful indictments of racism to stuff that makes no sense, or seems to be there purely for the purposes of provocation.

60
The Needle Drop

On most tracks, not even Kanye's excellent production is enough to save Nasir from Nas himself.

58
Pretty Much Amazing

There’s no way to get around this: the worst part about Nas’s new album is Nas.

50
The 405

NASIR is the weakest of the recent Kanye output, though perhaps more consistent than ye it fails to put a dent in the current hip hop conversation, feeling especially limp in comparison to the sudden arrival of a one-time nemesis and his wife.

50
Exclaim!

On its surface, Nasir is politically aware and a comfort to die-hard fans, but upon closer inspection, the album exposes itself as hollow and eerily manipulative. He's trying to play us.

50
Rolling Stone

Nasir is among the weakest Nas albums, but there’s nothing spectacular about its failure. It is, simply, the one thing Nas has avoided being all these years, through revolutionary highs and car-crash lows: dull.

50
AllMusic

Rather than playing out like a mercilessly edited, up-to-date album with all fat removed, Nasir resembles rotting offcuts bundled with some fresh standouts to placate a fan base expecting a major statement.

50
PopMatters

The musical performances by West and his collaborators alone are able to save Nasir from total disaster and do warrant a listen. But as for Nas, he's left completely overshadowed.

43
Consequence of Sound

His lyricism, though timely at points, is largely impersonal if not flat-out pedestrian and makes NASIR the first album in Nas’ catalog that Nas has failed to show up for.

BradTasteMusic
74

Nice joke Nas. So when is Illmatic 2?

Actually this may not be another Illmatic but it shows development and a switchup in a positive direction none the less. I enjoy the very warm feel of this project. It feels unique and shows Nas at his most inner Hopsin. Only difference is that he isn’t a corny hunk of trash.

cfnugent
60

After 6 years, Nas returns with twelfth studio album produced by Kanye West. 'NASIR' is the fourth of five albums produced by West known as the "Wyoming Sessions", each totaling seven tracks and all released within weeks of each other. Other notable albums from these sessions include Pusha T's 'Daytona' and the Kid Cudi & Kanye West project 'Kids See Ghosts', both some of my personal favorites (I have both on vinyl!)

What Kanye West does with the production on this album is no ... read more

nino21321312312
45

NASIR is very disappointing album for me. Not only the album is only 26 minutes but also these songs sounds like demos for a more developed album with some concept. Production i mostly ok with some nice sample but I know Kanye can do allot better that this.
And hiss features are alright too. More singing features like Diddy and The-Dream not only sounds like dog shit but also don't fit in the songs. Nas do his things alright with some hard bars and nice flow.

fav tracks : Bonjour

least fav ... read more

geraldatrichome
89

everything was basically just a Kanye song on a Nas album but honestly the type of Kanye song that everything is is the type that I want to hear more of.

alexbigloo
76

Overhated. Ye production does carry a lot of the songs for me though.

36

A noble effort.

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Track List

1Not For Radio
3:22
66
2Cops Shot the Kid
2:47
72
3White Label
2:58
70
4Bonjour
3:21
69
5everything
7:32
72
6Adam and Eve
4:10
feat. The-Dream
82
7Simple Things
2:19
65
Total Length: 26 minutes
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Added on: June 14, 2018