Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

Nas

Highest Rated: 100% Shake the Dust (2014)

Lowest Rated: 23% Belly (1998)

Birthday: Sep 14, 1973

Birthplace: Queens, New York, USA

Beginning with the landmark 1994 debut Illmatic, Nas (born Nasir Jones) became a towering figure in East Coast rap. Born in Brooklyn, Nas is the son of jazz cornetist/guitarist Olu Dara. Nas moved to Queens after his parents divorced and he dropped out of grade school. He began recording as a teenager, first stirring up notice as a guest rapper on the Main Source album track "Live at the Barbeque" (which was never a single) and then teamed up with MC Serch of 3rd Bass, who managed Nas, used him on his own tracks and ultimately got him signed (However, Def Jam's Russell Simmons was among the label execs who turned down the demo that became Illmatic). The album was purely New York in its subject matter, detailing the desperation of life in the projects and the rapper's struggles to escape them; there are also moments of upbeat escape. His verbal acuity earned comparisons to everyone from Rakim to Bob Dylan, and the album's multi-producer approach, with a different sound on every track, was emulated by many rappers afterward. Illmatic almost single-handedly shifted the nexus of rap from the West Coast back to the East, with the rise of the Notorious B.I.G. and Jay-Z still to come. While Nas' followup work never had quite as much cultural impact, his commercial and critical fortunes have seldom flagged in the following decades. There were grumbles that his second album It Was Written slanted toward pop (which it partly did, though much of the album had an underworld/drug trade theme), yet it outsold Illmatic and hit Number One. He next planned to make a double CD that would tell his life story; however the initial sessions were leaked online and he cut I Am down to a single disc. Notably it included the Tupac/B.I.G. tribute "We Will Survive" which included a swipe at Jay-Z; the fallout from this would stretch for years to come. Jay-Z responded with the track "Takeover" (which claimed Nas "Had a spark when you started but now you're just garbage") and from there the battle was on. Nas teased his next album Stillmatic-- less a sequel to his debut that a reclaiming of his territory-with the single "Ether," whose first line was "Fuck Jay-Z!" It would be another four years before they buried the hatchet, appearing together on Nas' album Hip-Hop is Dead-- which also buried the East/West Coast hatchet by including Dr. Dre and the Game. Meanwhile Nas made some smart business investments, including Dropbox and Lyft along with opening his own sneaker store and starting a clothing line, HSTRY. Nas' twelfth album, 2018's Nasir, was a collaboration with Kanye West who co-wrote and co-produced. It continued his three-decade hit streak by entering the Billboard chart at Number Five, while prompting the usual head-scratching about whether Nas could ever top his debut.

Show Less Show More

Highest rated movies

100% 83% Shake the Dust
Watchlist
98% 82% Time Is Illmatic
Watchlist
98% 75% Quest Watchlist
91% 55% Fresh Dressed
Watchlist
86% 62% I Am Bolt
Watchlist
85% 79% Tyson
Watchlist
70% 60% The Land
Watchlist
69% 68% Monster Watchlist
51% 51% Black Nativity
Watchlist
39% 75% In Too Deep
Watchlist

Filmography

Movies

Credit
No Score Yet No Score Yet Coin Unknown (Character) - 2022
No Score Yet 67% You're Watching Video Music Box Director - 2021
No Score Yet No Score Yet Smoke: Marijuana and Black America Narrator (Character),
Executive Producer
- 2020
69% 68% Monster Raymond "Sunset" Green (Character) - 2018
No Score Yet No Score Yet Nas, Live From the Kennedy Center With the National Symphony Orchestra Unknown (Character) - 2018
98% 75% Quest Self $26.8K 2017
No Score Yet 100% The American Epic Sessions Music Performer - 2016
86% 62% I Am Bolt Unknown (Voice) - 2016
70% 60% The Land Executive Producer $18.0K 2016
No Score Yet 92% Stretch and Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives Self - 2015
91% 55% Fresh Dressed NAS (Character) - 2015
100% 83% Shake the Dust Executive Producer,
Original Music
- 2014
98% 82% Time Is Illmatic Unknown (Character) $109.3K 2014
51% 51% Black Nativity Street Prophet (Isaiah) (Character) $7.0M 2013
85% 79% Tyson Original Song $887.1K 2008
No Score Yet 80% Murda Muzik Unknown (Character) - 2004
No Score Yet 100% Nas - Made You Look: God's Son Live Unknown (Character) - 2003
No Score Yet 19% Ticker Det. Art "Fuzzy" Rice (Character) - 2001
39% 75% In Too Deep Drug Dealer on Street Corner (Character) $14.0M 1999
23% 87% Belly Sincere (Character) $9.6M 1998

TV

Credit
No Score Yet 50% The Late Show With Stephen Colbert Music Performer,
Guest
2018 2023
No Score Yet No Score Yet Origins of Hip-Hop Narrator 2022
No Score Yet No Score Yet Supreme Team Executive Producer,
Director
2022
No Score Yet 44% The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Music Performer 2014 2020
75% No Score Yet You Ain't Got These Self 2020
100% No Score Yet AMC Visionaries: Rap Yearbook Unknown (Character) 2019
No Score Yet No Score Yet Poetry in America Guest 2018
83% 80% Rapture Unknown (Character) 2018
No Score Yet No Score Yet Great Performances Music Performer 2018
100% 90% The Defiant Ones Self 2017
82% 88% The Get Down Executive Producer 2016-2017
No Score Yet 42% Jimmy Kimmel Live! Music Performer,
Guest
2008 2010 2012 2016
56% 69% Any Given Wednesday With Bill Simmons Guest 2016
No Score Yet No Score Yet Tavis Smiley Guest 2014-2015
No Score Yet No Score Yet Finding Your Roots Guest 2014
No Score Yet No Score Yet Real Time With Bill Maher Guest 2014
No Score Yet No Score Yet Funny or Die's Billy on the Street Guest 2013
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Colbert Report Guest 2008 2012
No Score Yet No Score Yet Late Night With Jimmy Fallon Music Performer 2012
No Score Yet 69% Hawaii Five-0 Unknown (Guest Star) 2010
No Score Yet No Score Yet Lopez Tonight Music Performer 2010
No Score Yet No Score Yet The Wendy Williams Show Guest 2008