Ziv Haddi | Contributor
Featured image: A$AP Rocky and A$AP Nast performing together in 2015. | Courtesy of EI Seven (Flickr)
A$AP Nast, formerly known as New York Nast before he joined the hip hop collective A$AP Mob, is the lesser known but equally talented cousin of A$AP Rocky. Nast’s quick-fire, multisyllabic verses stand out on the Harlem-based group’s mixtapes. With his east coast flow, witty lyricism and features on numerous albums, it’s hard to imagine why this talented MC has not yet dropped a debut project of his own.
A$AP Mob dropped their debut album titled L.O.R.D. in 2013 with Nast’s leading single “Trillmatic” which featured Wu-Tang Clan’s Method Man. More recently, Nast put out a track along with A$AP Twelvy and Rocky entitled “Presidents,” which makes an apparent tribute to Brooklyn native Nast’s “The World is Yours.”
Nast consistently keeps his music 90s east coast slang and that bleeds into the production of his music as well. Nast’s lyrics make it clear that he’s trying to bring back the iconic sounds and flows of the 90s rap scene that legendary New York rappers such as A Tribe Called Quest and the Wu-Tang Clan made rap fans fall in love.
Nast’s music is characteristically entertaining and insightful. His lyrics reflect on the environment that he and his crew have navigated through in order to get to where they are today.
Of course, Nast talks about lighter, less serious subjects like how he always wears designer clothing and jewellery. Some of the greatest rappers of all time, including the Notorious B.I.G., Tupac and Jay-Z have all talked about materiality in their music, but are still considered to be lyrical and musical geniuses. They are still respected because beneath that layer of superficiality, they all managed to balance it out with a great deal of introspection about their respective lives. To listen to Nast’s and other artists’ life perspectives is inspirational as they show how it’s possible to overcome hardships and succeed.
A$AP Nast is a rapper to look out for. Every feature he puts out is shaping him into a better solo artist and member of the A$AP collective. He has huge potential and at this point, has proven that he is capable of cooking up a debut album of his own. As we wait for Nast to drop a solo album on us, his crew mate A$AP Ferg recently stopped by in Toronto on November 27.
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