Much politically and socially conscious music once emanated from mainstream hip-hop. In recent memory, however, this has not been the case. After the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, a list of songs were sent to the major radio programmers in the country, strongly suggesting they not be played. This list included such songs as “Imagine” by John Lennon, a tune that, God forbid, may cause people to think about the prospect of peace and a better world in a time when war and hatred are the rule of the day. Perhaps the most interesting thing about the list of forbidden music was that no rap songs were included. Zero. The reason for this glaring omission lies in the fact that the vast majority of mainstream hip-hop artists do not include anything of political relevance in their lyrics. The accepted paradigm, however, was challenged when on Dec. 12, Nas released his fifth LP, Stillmatic, easily Nas’s best album since 1996’s It Was Written.
Although this album may represent Nas’ return to the pedestal of New York’s best MC, for the purpose of this article, his return to lyrical prominence will for the most part be ignored. What is most notable about this record is the anti-war message and hostility he shows towards inequalities brought about by race and class differences at home. Nas takes on the role of political critic, alternatively condemning U.S. policy abroad while qualifying this with the injustices he sees in his own country.
“Rule,” which samples the Tears for Fears’ “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” is the most outwardly political song on the album. On this track, Nas speaks not only of his disillusionment with the current war, but also of the alienation he feels from his own country. He begins the first verse by recalling, “I came from the housing / Tenement buildings / Unlimited killings / Menaces marked for death / Better known as the projects … I would think I’m a part of USA and be proud / Confronted with racism / Started to feel foreign / Like the darker you are, the realer your problems.” Here, Nas expresses the manner in which he began to question his own patriotism. In professing how he feels foreign, Nas is making reference to the inherent irony in the often-blind patriotism currently exhibited by some of the poorest and most alienated factions of American society. The skeptical manner in which he regards the decisions of his government makes it easier for him to arrive at his anti-war sentiment: “Call a truce / World peace / Stop acting like savages / No war / We should take time and think / The bombs and tanks makes mankind extinct … lost lives in the towers and Pentagon / Why then must it go on? / We must stop the killing / Tell me why we die / We all God’s children.” Instead of what he feels to be a false and generic unity at home, Nas calls for a more global, inclusive unity founded on peace, not one founded for the purpose of uniting against someone else.
“My Country” is yet another song on Stillmatic with a strong political message. In the interlude, Nas describes his feelings towards the United States in the aftermath of Sept. 11 and the subsequent conflict. “What this war just showed me, is like, whatever you want out of life, whatever you feel is rightfully yours, go out and take it, even if that means blood and death … this is what my country is, and my country is a motherfucker.” At end of the track, he pledges his allegiance to fallen political revolutionaries of the past who were destroyed by their people or country, including Martin Luther King, Patrice Lumumba and Che Guevara. Nas feels as though by virtue of what he says and what he knows, he may be destined for a similar fate.
Although he is likely overestimating the potential impact of his music, it is quite refreshing to know he does recognize that his music matters, that people are listening. After all, why else would radio stations ban certain songs? Music is powerful. We are defined by how we use language, in the same way that the language we use defines the reality around us.
Spoken-word artist Saul Williams powerfully claims that “what we say matters (becomes matter) … We seem to have once, subconsciously, known that in hip-hop as well. Our earliest slang, ‘word’, ‘word up’, ‘word life’, ‘word is bond’, all seemed to revel in this knowledge … then when Biggie named his first album Ready to Die we all acted surprised when it happened. Word is bond, son. Plain and simple.” Nas seems to acknowledge the potential power in his words, which makes it all the more disappointing when he reverts to uninspired, un-thought-provoking lyrics.
Stillmatic is not uniform in its message. Many songs exhibit the same tired, recycled verses about champagne, “ice” and guns. The obligatory line about sipping Cristal is there (no one cares what kind of champagne you drink, honestly). On “One Mic,” which may be stylistically the best song on the record, Nas inexplicably advocates excessive violence, something he emphatically condemns elsewhere on the album: “My heart is racing / Tasting revenge in the air/ I let this shit slide for too many years / Too many times now/ I’m strapped with a couple of macs / Too many nines/ If y’all niggas really with me, get busy/ Load up the semis/ Do more than just hold it / Explode the clip until you empty.”
The speed of the beat in “One Mic” increases throughout each verse, as does the fervor with which Nas recites his lyrics. The effect is powerful, and perhaps emblematic of the anger Nas feels boiling up inside of him. Even if the call to violence is merely a metaphor for a call to action or revolution, the verse (and others) are nevertheless confusing when set against the backdrop of songs with a more peaceful message. Nas is not an advocate of senseless violence and the death that results. However, as he himself recognizes, words can manifest into reality?word is bond. To once again quote Williams, “you will manifest your truths and die in the face of them.” Although music is most often a commentary on the present, it also functions in the melding of the future. The realities we depict today, real or not, affect the reality we will see tomorrow.
Although Nas appears a little schizophrenic when the overall content is considered, confusion is to be expected in times like these. The conflicting realities and messages depicted on this album are welcome when compared to the pre-packaged ‘truths’ given to us by most mainstream artists and the mainstream media. Unlike other offerings from his peers, Stillmatic makes you think. Nas is back, and hopefully, so too is the presence of conscious, critical lyrics in mainstream hip-hop.
