If you’ve been anxiously waiting for a solid release date for Queens legend Nas’ new album planned for 2017, relax. Not only can you catch him live at the Cosmopolitan this weekend, but he has already dropped plenty of amazing tracks this year. Study up:
• In April, Nas teamed with DJ Shadow for “Systematic,” a beyond funky track with an old-school beat for the Silicon Valley soundtrack.
• The springtime also brought “Angel Dust,” a soulful bit of storytelling that played a role in the Netflix series The Get Down, which Nas also executive-produced.
• Rick Ross and Nas had already teamed up four times for some hip-hop fire before this year’s “Powers That Be,” which offers extra-vicious rhymes from the East Coast icon.
• DJ Khaled’s Grateful album has been all the rage on the charts this year, but the producer’s team up with Travis Scott and Nas on “It’s Secured” stands out—the same way that Nas’ hip-hop legacy shines bright. “For them it was hustle or death; I reshuffled my deck,” he raps. Nas at the Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan, October 6.
