Nas News

Amy Winehouse was a very unlikely candidate for the role of "hip hop muse". Her soulful take on contemporary tunes and her tumultuous, tabloid-trailed existence endeared her to an audience that adored her "ratchet" behavior - before that word was attributed to anything outside of a toolbox.

Nas addresses comparisons between "good kid, m.A.A.d city" and "Illmatic," says comparing the two isn't fair to Kendrick Lamar.

BabyPaul, the producer known for his work with Nas and AZ , has signed New Jersey rapper Drift to his D.O.E./ Transparency label.

Throughout his career Nas has used his music to explore and present historical information he felt was relevant to his listeners, so it's not surprising the Queens emcee took advantage of the opportunity to learn more about his own family history.

When Nas became the first rapper invited to trace his family tree through the PBS series "Finding Your Roots," he welcomed the opportunity.

The stars of Downton Abbey aren't the only luminaries whom journalists will chat with during PBS's portion of the Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour today and Wednesday.

Many in the crowd at the Lovebox Festival in London this weekend were not yet born when U.S. rapper Nas released his groundbreaking "Illmatic" two decades ago, but they seemed to know all the lines anyway.

Hip-hop abounds with birthday references. Most involve partying, birthday suits, and, though food in rap is its own great subject, cake.

"I told him I was scared to put it out," Fashawn says in an interview with AllHipHop .

In celebration of the 20th Anniversary of his seminal debut album Illmatic, Nas recently held a contest inviting fans to collaborate and produce the official music video for "Represent," the influential track off of the classic release.

Ever since her days adding soulful gravitas to poet Natalie Stewart's gravely raps as part of the early '00s British neosoul duo Floetry, Marsha Ambrosius has always stood out.

While performing in Cologne, Germany on his European Illmatic XX Tour, Nas brought Mass Appeal's newest signee, Fashawn to the stage.

When Illmatic , Nas ' seminal 1994 debut, was reissued in April for the album's 20th anniversary, hip-hop fans were treated to countless retrospective reviews, a documentary on the film, a performance by the 40-piece National Symphony Orchestra and extensive interviews with the rapper himself.

A wise man once said on arguably one of the greatest rap albums of all time, "people be asking me all the time, what's gonna happen with hip-hop.

Today, the rap world seems to be missing a socially conscious voice. Someone that can talk about having a good time, but also talk about real issues, not just bragging about what they have.

Snoop on the set of his first video, "What's My Name," directed by Fab 5 Freddy, Long Beach, California, 1993 Call it an instance of being in the right place at the right time -- with the right talent: Bronx-born photographer Lisa Leone came of age in New York City in the early '80s just as hip-hop was exploding across the five boroughs.

The ink is dry and the cynicism has settled, Fashawn is officially signed to Nas' imprint Mass Appeal Records.

The New York City borough, Queens, is home to the nation's largest housing projects: Queensbridge.

Shyne also says Nas influenced him and asks the "Illmatic" emcee how he's been "so hot for 20 years."

HotNewHipHop has published "15 Classic Hip Hop Debuts," a list of debut albums that the publication deems worthy of the "classic" label.