Contradiction the yin and the yang the simultaneous existence of two competing realities and
the larger than life persona that depicts populist realism are at the core of Nas's Illmatic.
Yet Nas's identity - as an inner-city youth a child of hip hop and a Black American -
predicts those philosophical quandaries as much as it does its brazen ambition. Partly because
of that recklessly broad scope the artistic impact of Illmatic was massive. The record finds
its place in the greatest transition in hip hop up to that point the spot where the streets
and the charts collided.
