Rating: 9 out of 10

The Good: I simply cannot say enough good things about this album. Hip hop is definitely not dead.
The Bad: "We Make The World Go Round" with Chris Brown & The Game seems out of place. It's a pretty good song, but considering the tone of the album it sticks out like a sore thumb
The Ugly: No uglies, but "Be A Nigger Too" didn't make the cut, and isn't included on the album at all.
Download These: "Project Roach". "Y'all My Niggas", "Sly Fox"



Theres been a fear amongst hip hop fans that Nas named his album Nigger for no reason other than to stir up controversy. Under all of the arguing, fighting, and protesting, the album was going to contain the same bullshit messages and rhymes we hear on countless other rap albums all year. Of course Nas has never had a reputation for doing such a thing, but when repeatedly asked to elaborate on the decision for such a strong title, he never gave an answer good enough to satisfy everyone.

Even IF the album was as potent as he claimed it was, did the final product remain that way after record label politics took their course? When news broke that he succumbed to pressures from distributors and changed the album title, there was a sentiment from fans that the album's integrity had been compromised. If he changed the album title what else would he change? Would they bleep out lines that people in suits deem to offensive? Would songs be removed entirely if the wrong feathers happened to be ruffled?

Those worries and questions are immediately answered shorty after the start of the album. Nas has easily delivered the best hip hop album of the year, and one of the most important rap releases this decade. The album explores topics such as the media manipulation, the relationship between blacks and the government, generational gaps in the black community, and even women's rights in the U.S. Over the years one of Nas' biggest flaws has always been beat selection, and it's great that the issue has finally been addressed on Untitled. Gone are the days when fans will be able to say, "his lyrics are on point, but DAMN those beats are horrible". Guys like DJ Toomp, Stic.Man, Salaam Remi and Jay Electronica did a great job of delivering a great track without overshadowing the lyrics.

One of the first things you'll notice by surveying the track list is the first single is nowhere to be found. Nas was quoted as saying he didn't want to "Nigger everyone to death" which is why the lead single "Be A Nigger Too" and the intro "Nigger Hatred" were not included on the LP at all. It also might explain the appearance of "Make The World Go Round" featuring Chris Brown and The Game, which is the polar opposite (pop sounds and light material). It's a cool song, but it has little to do with the rest of the album and obviously seems thrown on for radio play. "Hero" featuring Keri Hilson is similar in the sense that it's one of the very few songs that are palatable for mainstream play, but this track doesn't break the flow of the album as a whole. Nas takes a moment to explain why Nigger was changed to Untitled during the song when he spit:

"This universal apartheid/I'm hog-tied, the corporate side
Blocking y'all from going to stores and buying it
First L.A. and Doug Morris was riding wit it
But Newsweek's article startled big wigs they said, "Nas, why is he trying it?"
My lawyers only see the Billboard charts as winning
Forgetting - Nas the only true rebel since the beginning
Still in musical prison, in jail for the flow
Try telling Bob Dylan, Bruce, or Billy Joel they can't sing what's in their soul....So UNTITLED it is
I never changed nothing, but people remember this
if Nas can't say it, think about these talented kids
with new ideas being told what they can and cant spit
I can't sit and watch it, so shit imma drop it"

"Sly Fox" is one of my favorite songs on the album despite two factual inaccuracies (Fox does not own YouTube, nor do they broadcast "To Catch A Predator"). For the better part of this decade Fox "news" Network has been the bane of hip hop's existence and went out of its way at every chance to sensationalize rap as the biggest evil in our country. Before this song there weren't any rappers that stepped up to the plate with a response outside of a simple "Fuck Bill O'Reilly", so the song was much needed. The network has long held a reputation for leaning heavily to the right and spreading propaganda and this song serves as a call for American's to wake up and seek alternative news sources.

The song "Fried Chicken" had me worried before I actually heard it (if you have an album named "Nigger" and a song named "Fried Chicken" it just raises red flags ya know?). The track actually turned out to be one of the most creative and enjoyable cuts on the entire LP though. You can tell Mark Ronson had a hand in this because the instrumental really sounds like something left off of Amy Winehouse's last album. Songs like "America" and "N.I.G.G.E.R. (the slave and the master)" touch on how blacks never feel accepted as full fledged Americans despite helping build the country, "they can't stand us, even in white tees, blue jeans, and red bandanas". "Y'all My Niggas" (and the intro to "Project Roach" to an extent) explain why Nas chose to use the N word in the first place. Theres a huge disconnect between the hip hop generation and their parents pertaining to the N-word in general. "Find a room to lock yourself in and close the door, it's some heavy concepts that we have to explore. We gotta strip the word down rugged and raw, the rhetoric of Dr. King just ain't around no more".

Rap music has been in such a rut over the last few years with stale offerings and repetitive themes, so for an album like this to come along right now was perfect timing. Theres nothing wrong with Soulja Boy, 50 Cent, and Rick Ross, but what Nas just brought to the table was necessary to balance out the game. If one were looking for a reason to do so, at first glance it's very easy to peg Untitled as the typical angry "pro-black" rap album full of Malcolm X quotes about how "whitey" treated us wrong. However at the heart of the matter the album is about Americans, everyone from inner city blacks to suburban white kids and soccer moms. There's a quote by Nas near the end of the album on "We're Not Alone" (a song about UFO's believe it or not) which does a decent job of summing things up.

"Yo, I'm American born. Love America. Love my peoeple. Love all mankind All nationalities you know
I think it's just been recent when everybody started to feel like there was elite group that runs everything
and everyone else was sheep, ignorant, making all ethnicities, colors and creeds....Niggers...
blind to what's reallly going on."

And there you have it.