Nasty Nas, who has yet to put out an album of his own, only seems to get better with age. He gave you a lyrical chin check a few years ago with his performance on "Live At The B.B.Q.," and last year he had you standing with your mouth open with "Halftime." Now, he has some '94 flavor snatched off his upcoming LP, and guess what? Its dope. Nas is one of those brothers who never puts out anything wack. Combine a little radio-friendly "Human Nature" with the boom-bap of the streets and what do you get? The next Nasty Nas street delight. It ain't hard to tell that Nas is one of the dopest kids to ever touch the mic. His congested delivery and rapid pacing makes his complex rhymes sound easy, until you try to follow him word for word. He's like a drum, the rhymes keep going and going; they don't build up to a punchline then diminish, every word surpasses the last. There are no throwaway rhymes. When Nas hits the pinnacle he doesn't pause to admire his work, he keeps going: "My mic check is life or death / Breathin' in a sniper's breath / Sparkle like a diamond / Sneak a Uzi on an island in my army jacket linin' / Hit the earth like a comet / Invasion / Nas is like the Afro-centric Asian / Half-man half-amazin' ..." The track might be commercial but the vocal is so raw that you don't even think about crossover. Which just proves the point that a real MC can turn even the most pop-friendly track into a hardcore anthem." - The Source's Sure Shot Single, 2/94. Check out the video for "It Ain't Hard To Tell" below, one of my favorites off Illmatic...
Original review of "It Ain't Hard To Tell" in The Source (2/94)...
