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Johnny Dangerous: If Peaches and Mickey Avalon mated
Niggardly Nas :: After a career full of ups and downs, can “Mr. Take Advantage” still speak for the disadvantaged?
By Brandon Perkins Photography by Phil Knott
04/18/08 :: URB 153
[Editor’s Note: URB #153 was already printed when Nas decided to wuss out on the title of his 10th record, but that still doesn’t change the need for proper dialogue on the subject. It might even make it more important.]
It’s a question of thinly veiled semantics: If I write “the n-word,” you still say “nigger” in your head. Maybe you’ll pontificate upon the pronunciation—whether this particular use’s context finishes with an “a” or “e-r”—but the n-word is to nigger as rich is to wealthy, hue is to color, divisive is to controversial. It’s just a word, but those collections of letters define everything. Even “window” conjures a lurid combination of images, feelings, memories and opinions, while whoever says or writes it—Maya Angelou? Bob Vila? A pant-suited realty agent?—alters its results immensely. Window is not nigger. Nas is not Bob Vila.
Raised as Nasir Jones in the Queensbridge Projects, Nas had a poet’s gift that manifested itself into legend before he turned 20 years old. His debut album, Illmatic, was a dizzying display of lyrical dexterity, an uncensored and unforgiving look at the crime and poverty he lived amidst, and a carefree celebration that he was alive at all. Like the perfect Raymond Carver story or commentary from Malcolm X at his fiery peak, there’s not a word wasted across the album’s 10 tracks. On it, he rapped about “bullet holes left in [his] peepholes” and “youngin’ niggaz pullin’ the triggers” with a sadness that could only be generated with an unaffected matter-of-factness. Nasty Nas rapped about bullet holes because he saw bullet holes and he said “nigga” because no one in his world raised an eyebrow to it.
I’m not Nas. I’m the white kid writing “nigger.” I’ve rapped along to it (or at least the hip-hop friendly version) since 1992 when, admittedly enough, I had no idea what the fuck it meant. I also thought “dead heads and frog legs….mm cake mix” was the greatest lyric in the history of lyrics. I was in the sixth grade and wore a fluorescent orange baseball cap that said “chronic” in green block letters, even as I thought that a joint meant rolling a singular pot leaf like a burrito. What Bushwick Bill meant by “blunt” was way beyond me. But after years of memorizing stanzas from Wu-Tang, Nas, Jay-Z, Redman and DMX, thusly uttering “nigga” tens of thousands of times; after moving to neighborhoods that actually housed black people, thusly making black friends; the ethics behind my utterances came into question.
I tell you this only because Nas made me. Not directly, of course. In fact, he thrives on seeing people struggle, squirm and spew venom at America’s racist unmentionables. But he named his album Nigger and I’m the guy of European descent assigned to discuss the word, umm, album. It’s Nas’s 10th official full-length (counting 2002’s The Lost Tapes) and his most coherent since Illmatic. Perhaps of greater consequence, Nas speaks about Nigger like it's his most inspired work since that very personal yet glaringly public attack by Jay-Z resulted in Stillmatic. With a word this loaded acting as the album’s first impression, Nas doesn’t have a choice. He’s not about to give me a choice either.
In a silent recording room, sitting across from Nas, I have the liberal white kid dilemma of the hip-hop millennium: How do I initiate a conversation about Nas’s new album with Nas? I’m from a trailer park section of Connecticut where we graduated with two and a half minorities (literally: Roberto was Filipino, Alex was Puerto Rican, as was Mario’s father) in a class of 54. Diversity day was a shoulder-shrugged exercise in futility—even as most people meant well, no one was actually saying anything. Free Tibet, not “Free Disproportionately Incarcerated Black And Brown Males.” We celebrated cultures in Africa, but no one asked out loud if it was racist to feel unsafe in black neighborhoods. And there definitely wasn’t an etiquette lesson in discussing Nigger with Nas.
The House of Blues doesn’t have the answer either, but according to its website, the studio “is a world class facility set in the lush hills of Encino, California, within the quiet boundaries of a private gated complex.” The 90-minute rush-hour drive out of Los Angeles, Benz-coated driveway and resort-quality landscaping certainly agree. In the compound’s basement studio, Nas and his manager quit glancing over the pencil scratched notepad that lists Nigger’s potential tracks to quickly get our interview going.
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. Comments:
i bet he changed the title cause the album suckz. he scared of the responsibility.
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 04:26 by james
You know what this dude up here must be young and dumb, and the title of this post throws me off career full of disappointment, come on the hip hop game is a dissapointment, the majority of what you clowns like is bull shit, yall need to sit back and listen to real HIP HOP and stop thinking that this new bull shit is HIP HOP, it's bull shit hop, Brandon Perkins, you a clown for the title homey!!
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 04:35 by Soulfull Vibes
Are you serious? Niggardly Nas :: "After a career full of disappointment, can “Mr. Take Advantage” still speak for the disadvantaged?" Brandon, Every Mc Has Ups & Downs But Can You Remember This Kids Nasir's Resume'...He Had #1 Albums, This "Popcorn" Rap Its F**kin Up The Hip-Hop Future! Nas Is Legendary...!
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 05:12 by Why U Wanna Know?
i don't know, after illmatic's high standard and a lot of weak shit (a few cuts and stillmatic excluded) there's been plenty of disappointments in the dude's career. but that's hardly the point of the piece, once you read past the blurb...
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 05:16 by He Who Knows
how this writer gone hate on Nas..and all you stupid fucks probably like "cool cats" and think thats real hip hop...Nas aint a gimmick and if you want real hip hop go to arizemag.com hoes!!!
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 05:47 by jase;
this writer is week...urb get some real hip-hop writers who actually know what the hell to ask a TRUE HIP HOP ARTIST: NAS...the headline is weak and you must of payed attention to the billboards and not the streets!! NAS is the SHIT!!!
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 05:52 by who the hell wrote this?!
Do you dudes read articles or just skim through them? I changed the subhead for y'all, only because those particular semantics really ain't matter to me, and shouldn't have for you either. The real shit is actually in the piece.
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 06:07 by Brandon Perkins
maan far as eye can see, ear can hear and knows can tell, nuff hip hop "artists" are only stylin it for Hollywood, the real U$ religion period. Who's the biggest niggar of them all?? ...fuck that shit fellas, come on, the real deal is we ALL niggaz DOWN here. Wanna show me power thru music - lift me with something, anything ..or u just a soul sucka too. And I ain't buying that
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 07:49 by blud brutha
Why do these faggots keep crying about Nas changing his title? If he didn't the album wouldn't have seen the light of the day, would everybody prefer to never get to hear it? Honestly
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 08:08 by Elucid
the writer kinda sucked. Nas is Nas. I'm from that era, so I always buy his shit anyways. The truth will be in the lyrics.
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 10:09 by for real
This was a wonderful article. It shows me once again how awkward Nas is interviews. The man seems to have become less and less able to communicate whatever points he seems to have in a cohesive way, and it is sad to say the least. I can't help that this entire album is going to be like "These Are Our Heroes" : Good idea, but he FAILED in the execution and presentation of the idea. I don't blindly support any artist, and neither should you. Blind support doesn't show love for an artist as much as it shows a tendency to d*ck ride. The writer of the article didn't show blind support and I can appreciate that
Posted Tuesday, May 27, 2008 @ 10:21 by Reality Check
nas needs to get with Premier and make some bangers, or shut up all together.
Posted Wednesday, May 28, 2008 @ 02:53 by -_-
if you dont know hip hop or the artist that your speaking on shut up!!!! this man is a walking history book. i dont really like the title either but what other way to sell records and controversy? he is and will alwalys be one of hip hops best m.c. read between the lines before you comment(you know who you are)the media and corporate remind me of parents when we were coming up. when they had there music there parents didnt undersatnad , where getting the same thing now. they dont understand the music or the lingo!!! when we here a word that is bad we make a face or comment. listen first then comment.
Posted Wednesday, May 28, 2008 @ 09:22 by MF MOOK
It took how many months to put a coherent thought together about this album? Still is wasn't even worth reading. I'm waiting to hear the music and least talk from this lil dude. But the thing is, Nas isn’t a senator or even a pundit, he’s a rapper. That was actually the most intelligent line written in the entire article. Just drop the green lantern mixtape and your new album. Stop talking about it and let the music speak for itself. It actually does a better job than him anyways. RIP Pimp C
Posted Wednesday, May 28, 2008 @ 10:50 by ibarfly
ANYBODY WHO'S ANYBODY KNOWS THAT NAS IS THE GAY RAPPER!!!!
Posted Wednesday, May 28, 2008 @ 04:20 by new york new york
this is the worst white guilt piece in the history of white guilt pieces
Posted Thursday, May 29, 2008 @ 10:47 by j0s
http://www.nasindependenceday.com is open !
Posted Thursday, June 05, 2008 @ 04:49 by gr3um5
if you think polow and will.i.am are song titles you really have no business reviewing hip hop, let alone NaS' new album. Those are producers retard... You obviously don't understand his message or poor inner-city culture. Get a new job cuz you suck at this one.
Posted Friday, June 06, 2008 @ 03:48 by wow
This may be the worst written hip hop articles I have ever seen......Why is this dude writing hip hop articles if he really has no idea about the artist or the culture. polow and will.i.am are producers.....Nas is one of the best and most consistent mcs to ever do it....a real m.c. puts himself and his feelings out there....Nas keeps it 100...
Posted Friday, June 20, 2008 @ 01:45 by terrible article
Do people read? or think when reading? The dude wrote "titles" as if to insinuate the producers of the tracks. Did it occur to any of you that maybe the tracks didn't have names yet as the album was in the process of creation, thus Nas labeled or temporarily "titled" the tracks by producer? The dude further eluded by writing "he wrote keepers". Shits hilarious how you turds relate some shit you misinterpreted to a lack of knowledge on inner-city culture and hip-hop.
Posted Saturday, June 28, 2008 @ 03:16 by A. Medina
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