I will be delving into my favorite musicians' catalogs, ranking songs album by album. I also will be ranking my favorite non-album appearances of theirs. Only officially-released songs will be considered.
Here are the categories and their breakdowns:
ALBUMS: For every single-disc album of nine or more tracks, my top five (in sequential tracklist order) will be selected; for an album of eight or fewer tracks, four will be chosen; and for a double-disc, ten. Only songs on the original official tracklist are eligible. Hidden tracks and tracks labeled as bonuses will be eligible for inclusion in the miscellaneous section, as will songs included on re-releases.
GUEST APPEARANCES: Depending on the size of the artist's catalog, there will be either ten or twenty selections from songs on other artists' albums or singles. This includes that other artist's remixes.
COMPILATION APPEARANCES: Once again ten or twenty depending on catalog, songs that are exclusively on compilations, such as greatest hits albums, soundtracks, etc. Even if they are billed as a feature on another artist's song, any compilation appearances will appear here.
MISCELLANEOUS: Essentially non-album tracks--IE, bonus/hidden tracks, b-sides, remixes, and non-album singles. Ten will be selected.
ALBUMS
Illmatic (1994)
NOTE: An extremely difficult challenge, as it is a nearly flawless album with all nine tracks being classics.
N.Y. State of Mind
The World Is Yours featuring Pete Rock
Halftime
Represent
It Ain't Hard to Tell
It Was Written (1996)
The Message
Street Dreams
Take It in Blood
Black Girl Lost featuring JoJo
If I Ruled the World (Imagine That) featuring Lauryn Hill
The Album (with The Firm) (1997)
NOTE: Another extremely difficult challenge, but because this album is actually so poor. I could only come up with three.
Phone Tap feat. Dr. Dre
Desperados feat. Canibus
Firm Biz feat. Dawn Robinson
I Am... (1999)
NOTE: Unfortunately not the album it could/should have been, as it was one of the earliest victims of online piracy. What was meant to be a two-disc epic, the result was an inconsistent abridged version. Some of the leaked tracks will be represented later under Nastradamus and The Lost Tapes.
N.Y. State of Mind Pt. II
Small World
We Will Survive
Ghetto Prisoners
Nas Is Like
Nastradamus (1999)
Life We Chose
Project Windows featuring Ronald Isley
Come Get Me
God Love Us
New World
Stillmatic (2001)
Stillmatic (The Intro)
You're da Man
One Mic
2nd Childhood
What Goes Around featuring Keon Bryce
The Lost Tapes (2002)
Doo Rags
U Gotta Love It
Nothing Lasts Forever
Purple
Poppa Was a Playa
God's Son (2002)
Get Down
Made You Look
Book of Rhymes
Warrior Song featuring Alicia Keys
Dance
Street's Disciple (2004) (10)
A Message to the Feds, Sincerely, We the People
American Way featuring Kelis
These Are Our Heroes
Disciple
Just a Moment featuring Quan
Suicide Bounce featuring Busta Rhymes & Quan
Street's Disciple featuring Olu Dara
Virgo featuring Ludacris & Doug E. Fresh
Bridging the Gap featuring Olu Dara
War featuring Keon Bryce
Hip Hop Is Dead (2006)
Hip Hop Is Dead featuring will.i.am
Black Republican featuring Jay-Z
Blunt Ashes
Let There Be Light featuring Tre Williams
Can't Forget About You featuring Chrisette Michele
untitled (2008)
Queens Get the Money
Hero featuring Keri Hilson
N.*.*.*.*.R (The Slave and the Master)
Project Roach featuring The Last Poets
Y'all My N****s
Distant Relatives (with Damien Marley) (2010)
As We Enter
Strong Will Continue
Count Your Blessings
Nah Mean
Africa Must Wake Up featuring K'naan
Life Is Good (2012)
NASIR (2018) (4)
NOTE: Another challenging one, as--like Illmatic--there are so many great tracks that's it difficult to narrow it down to just five. Some of his other albums have had a lot to choose from, but the top five were pretty clear cut; this one is different.
Loco-Motive
Daughters
Reach Out featuring Mary. Blige
Stay featuring Kaye Fox
Bye Baby
NASIR (2018) (4)
Not for Radio featuring 070 Shake
White Label
everything featuring Kanye West & The-Dream
Adam and Eve featuring The-Dream
The Lost Tapes II (2019)
No Bad Energy
Jarreau of Rap (Skatt Attack)
The Art of It featuring J. Myers
Highly Favored
Beautiful Life featuring RaVaughn
King's Disease (2020)
King's Disease
Blue Benz
Ultra Black
All Bad featuring Anderson .Paak
The Cure
King's Disease II (2021)
EPMD/EPMD 2 featuring EPMD & Eminem
Rare
Nobody featuring Lauryn Hill
No Phony Love featuring Charlie Wilson
Nas Is Good
Magic (2021)
Speechless
40-16 Building
Wave Gods featuring ASAP Rocky & DJ Premier
The Truth
Dedicated
GUEST APPEARANCES (20)
Back to the Grill
MC Serch featuring Nas, Chubb Rock, & Red Hot Lover Lover Tone (Return of the Product, 1992)
Bath Salts
DMX featuring Jay-Z & Nas (Exodus, 2021)
The Essence
AZ featuring Nas (Aziatic, 2002)
Fast Life
Kool G Rap featuring Nas & Sean Brown (4,5,6, 1995)
Ghetto Dreams
Common featuring Nas (The Dreamer/The Believer, 2011)
Hip Hop
DJ Khaled featuring Scarface & Nas (Kiss the Ring, 2012)
How Ya Livin'
AZ featuring Nas (Pieces of a Man, 1998)
I Do It for Hip Hop
Ludacris featuring Nas & Jay-Z (Theater of the Mind, 2008)
In Between Us
Scarface featuring Nas & Tanya Herron (The Fix, 2002)
John Blaze
Fat Joe featuring Big Pun, Nas, Raekwon, & Jadakiss (Don Cartagena, 1998)
Journey Through the Life
Puff Daddy featuring Beanie Sigel, Nas, & Lil' Kim (Forever, 1999)
Live at the Barbeque
Main Source featuring Nas, Joe Fatal, & Akinyele (Breaking Atoms, 1991)
Nas Album Done
DJ Khaled featuring Nas (Major Key, 2016)
Queens Day
Run-DMC featuring Nas & Prodigy (Crown Royal, 2001)
Too Many Rappers
Beastie Boys featuring Nas (2009)
Verbal Intercourse
Raekwon featuring Ghostface Killah & Nas (Only Built 4 Cuban Linx..., 1995)
Victory
DJ Khaled featuring Nas & John Legend (Victory, 2010)
Why? (Remix)
Jadakiss featuring Styles P, Common, Nas, & Anthony Hamilton ("Why?", 2004)
Won't Take My Soul
DJ Khaled featuring Nas & Cee-Lo Green (Father of Asahd, 2019)
You Made Me
Harlem World featuring Nas & Carl Thomas (The Movement, 1999)
COMPILATION APPEARANCES (10)
Angels with Dirty Faces
(The Get Down Part II soundtrack, 2017)
Black Man in a White World (Ghetto Gettysburg Address)
Michael Kiwanuka featuring Nas (The Get Down soundtrack, 2016)
Grand Finale
with DMX, Method Man, & Ja Rule (Belly soundtrack, 1998)
Shine on 'Em
(Blood Diamond soundtrack, 2006)
Surviving the Times
(Greatest Hits, 2007)
Systematic
DJ Shadow featuring Nas (Silicon Valley soundtrack, 2017)
This Bitter Land
with Erykah Badu (The Land soundtrack, 2016)
War
featuring Raye (The Birth of a Nation soundtrack, 2016)
We March as Millions
(One Million Strong, Vol. 2: Love Peace & War, 2005)
Wrote My Way Out
with Dave East, Lin-Manuel Miranda, & Aloe Blacc (The Hamilton Mixtape, 2016)
MISCELLANEOUS
Affirmative Action (Remix)
with The Firm ("Street Dreams", 1996)
Better Than I've Ever Been/Classic (Better Than I've Ever Been) (Remix)
with Kanye West, KRS-One, & Rakim (2007)
Fetus
(The Lost Tapes, 2002)
Made You Look (Remix)
featuring Jadakiss & Ludacris (2002)
Nasty
(Life Is Good, 2012)
Stillmatic (Freestyle)
(2001)
Street Dreams (Remix)
featuring R. Kelly ("Street Dreams", 1996)
Thief's Theme
(Street's Disciple, 2004)
'Til My Last Breath
(King's Disease III, 2022)
The World Is Your (Q-Tip Remix)
featuring Pete Rock ("The World Is Yours", 1994)
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