Stillmatic

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Stillmatic
Stillmatic cover
Studio album by Nas
Released December 18, 2001 (US)
Recorded 2001
Genre Hardcore hip hop, East Coast hip hop, Alternative hip hop
Length 56:42
Label Ill Will Records/Columbia Records
CK-85736
Producer Nas
Large Professor
Chucky Thompson
DJ Premier
Ron Browz
Salaam Remi
Trackmasters Entertainment
L.E.S.
Baby Paul
Mike Risko
Hangmen 3
Megahertz Music Group
Lofey
Professional reviews
Nas chronology
Nastradamus
(1999)		 Stillmatic
(2001)		 From Illmatic to Stillmatic: The Remixes EP
(2002)
Singles from Stillmatic
  1. "Rule"
    Released: 2001
  2. "Got Ur Self A..."
    Released: December 4, 2001
  3. "One Mic"
    Released: April 16, 2002

Stillmatic is a hip hop album by Nas. It was released in December 2001 and was Nas' fifth studio album, following 1999's I Am... and Nastradamus. Upon its release, Stillmatic was hailed by many hip-hop fans as Nas' best album since his landmark debut, Illmatic.

Contents

[edit] Overview

Stillmatic marked Nas' reemergence atop of the rap scene, after many said his career was waning following his previous LP, Nastradamus (an album considered by some critics and fans to have been the most mediocre album in his discography). The success of the album resurrected Nas' career, as he has since released several successful and critically acclaimed albums. Well received by critics, Stillmatic received 5 mics from The Source magazine–a distinction set aside only for classic hip-hop albums. It was also ranked 20th on Chris Rock's 2005 list for Rolling Stone on the Top 25 Hip-Hop Albums of all time.[1]

Stillmatic was one of the most highly anticipated hip-hop albums of the year, primarily due to the fallout from Nas's heated battle with rival Jay-Z. Jay-Z had previously dissed Nas in his single "Takeover", taken from his September 2001 release, The Blueprint. At the time, the song's hard-hitting caliber was such that the song could have potentially ended Nas' career. On the contrary, however, the track seems to have merely served to reinvigorate Nas, as he responded with his own diss track. On Stillmatic, Nas retaliated with the anticipated song, "Ether", a response to "Takeover" that insinuated that Jay-Z had bitten lyrics from The Notorious B.I.G. several times, that he had sold out, and that he was a misogynist, among other things. Several hip-hop aficionados believe Nas won the feud based on this track, which many felt was much more vicious and ruthless than "Takeover", although this is still a subject of debate within hip-hop circles. Jay-Z would respond with the radio freestyle "Supa Ugly", which was not as well received as "Takeover" or "Ether".

The first single from Stillmatic was ""Rule" featuring Amerie. It was not heavily promoted but still managed to reach #27 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. It was not heavily promoted, did not receive a video, and was not put to compact disc, so it is unknown as a single from "Stillmatic" to some people. Many believe "Got Ur Self A..." was the first single. It was a lead single for Stillmatic, with a piano loop reminiscent of the music for a king's coronation and a sample from the well-known theme song of the HBO drama The Sopranos. The third single was "One Mic", which received acclaim for its content and video.

While widely-acclaimed in the hip-hop media, Stillmatic received more mediocre reviews from broader music review outlets such as Rolling Stone, Vibe, and All Music Guide. The album was certified platinum, though it failed to return Nas to the commercial peak he had reached in the mid and late '90s with It Was Written and I Am....

It is also noted that this is the first album where Nas collaborates with Salaam Remi and the last where he collaborates with DJ Premier. However, this was by no means a sign of falling out between Nas and DJ Premier, as they reunited in 2007 for the remix of 'Classic' featuring Kanye West, KRS-One and Rakim.

[edit] Track listing

# Title Length Performer(s) Songwriters Producer(s) Samples
1 "Stillmatic (Intro)" 2:11 Nas N. Jones, B. Hull, J. Backues Neal, J. Bynoe, N. Walden, R. Scott
2 "Ether" 4:37 Nas N. Jones, R. Turner Ron Browz
  • Contains samples from "Fuck Friendz" by Tupac Shakur, written by Tupac Shakur
3 "Got Ur Self A..." 3:48 Nas Nasir Jones
Megahertz
Jake Black
Chestur Arthur Burnett
Simon Edwards
Piers Marsh
Rob Spragg		 Megahertz Music Group
4 "Smokin'" 3:47 Nas N. Jones, L. Gates Nas
5 "You're Da Man" 3:26 Nas N. Jones, P. Mitchell Large Professor
  • Contains samples from "Sugar Man" by David Holmes, written by Jesus Rodriguez
  • Contains samples from "Theme From Exodus OG"
6 "Rewind" 2:13 Nas Nasir Jones
Paul Mitchell
Rick Rubin
Louis Armstrong		 Large Professor
7 "One Mic" 4:28 Nas N. Jones, C. Thompson Nas & Chucky Thompson for The Hitmen
  • Contains samples from "In The Air Tonight" by Phill Collins
  • Contains samples from "I'm Gonna Love You Just a Little More, Babe" by Barry White
8 "2nd Childhood" 3:51 Nas Nasir Jones
Chris E. Martin
Peabo Bryson		 DJ Premier
  • Contains samples from "Born To Love" by Peabo Bryson, written by Peabo Bryson
9 "Destroy and Rebuild" 5:24 Nas Nasir Jones
Paul Hendricks
Mike Risko
Scott La Rock
Lawrence Parker		 Baby Paul & Mike Risko
10 "The Flyest" 4:38 AZ, Nas Nasir Jones
Anthony Cruz
L. David Lewis
S. Thomas		 L.E.S.
  • Contains samples from "Child Of Tomorrow" by Badder Than Evil
11 "Rule" 4:32 Amerie, Nas Nasir Jones
Sam Barnes
Jean-Claude Olivier
Amerie Mi Marie Rogers		 Trackmasters Entertainment
12 "My Country" 5:12 Millennium Thug, Nas Nasir Jones
Michael Sandlofer		 Lofey
13 "What Goes Around" 4:59 Keon Bryce, Nas N. Jones, S. Gibbs Salaam Remi
14 "Every Ghetto" 3:29 Blitz, Nas N, Jones, L. Lewis L.E.S.
  • Contains samples from "Main Title The Eiger Sanction" by John Williams

The first pressing of Stillmatic featured "Braveheart Party", produced by Swizz Beatz and featuring Mary J. Blige and The Bravehearts, as track number eleven, between "The Flyest" and "Rule". "Braveheart Party" was removed from future pressings of the album as Blige stated that her vocals and the instrumental track were culled, without her permission, from unfinished recording sessions for her own album. As "Braveheart Party" was cited by many reviewers and fans as the weakest track on the LP, it was removed from the album without dispute.

The Japanese release of "Stillmatic" features three extra tracks: "No Idea Is Original", "Everybody's Crazy" and "Black Zombies" which are all found on The Lost Tapes, a Nas compilation album.

For a limited time in the U.S., Circuit City sold a version of the album with "No Idea's Original" and "Everybody's Crazy" as additional tracks.

[edit] Unreleased songs

  • "The Death of Escobar"
  • "You Can't Stop Me" (Produced By Kanye West) - Confirmed by Kanye West on MTV report Article in 2001[1]
  • "Kids Have All the Fun"

[edit] Credits

  • Executive Producer: Destiny Jones
  • Mastering: Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound Studios, NYC
  • A&R Direction: Lenny Nicholson
  • Album Coordination: Nikki Martin
  • Marketing: David Belgrave
  • Art Direction & Design: Chris Feldmann
  • Photography: Sacha Waldman
  • Producer: Daquan Williams

[edit] Chart positions

[edit] Album

Chart (2002) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard 200 5
U.S. Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums 1

[edit] Singles Chart Positions

Year Song Chart positions
Billboard Hot 100 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks Hot Rap Singles UK Singles Chart
2002 "Got Ur Self A..." #87 #37 #2
2002 "Ether" - #50 - -
2002 "One Mic" #43 #14 #10 -
2002 "Rule" - #67 - -

[edit] References

  1. ^ Chris Rock's Top 25

[edit] External links


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Nas
Studio albums
Compilations
Collaborations
Singles
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