Album Review: Nas, King’s Disease II

Nas

King’s Disease II (released August 6, 2021)

When you think about it, King’s Disease II could be one of the most important albums of Nas’ storied career.

Now before you close this window out of sheer disgust, hear a playa out.

No, the follow up to last year’s King’s Disease could never have the industry-shaking impact of Illmatic in 94 (still the best rap album ever recorded). It’s not the sharp sonic left turn that was It Was Written in 96, nor is it the climatic comeback that was Stillmatic in 2001. It’s not even the shining example of hip-hop maturity that is the vastly underrated Life is Good in 2012.

But now, more than any other era in the past decade, all eyes are on Nasir. King’s Disease Part 1, finally, FINALLY, helped Nas land that long-overdue Grammy win that had alluded him for nearly 30 years. Also, he found incredible chemistry with producer Hit-Boy, which helped bridge the gap between Nas’ Day One boom-bap base and younger rap fans who were brought up on a steady diet of trap and autotune.

Commercial AND critical success across generations is the holy grail of rap respect. Nas has earned it.

Now, he has to earn it all again with King’s Disease II, and it’s fitting that the album opens with “The Pressure” – “The pressure weigh a ton, it’s gettin too heavy/Had to inspire them again like I didn’t already.” But as Esco reminds us by verse two, “I been bench pressing the problems, ain’t even get sweaty.”

King’s Disease II is light work.

Admittedly, when I heard we’d be getting a sequel to King’s Disease, I assumed it would just be leftover cuts from the original sessions. Remember when you’d cop a CD from Target in the mid-00s and they’d tack on two or three ‘Exclusive tracks?’ Yep, I pictured an “album” disguised as bunch of random bonuses. Instead of table scraps, this is a full meal, with Nas once again at the head of the table as rap’s elder statesmen.

That role is most prominent on “Death Row East,” a history lesson about his role in one of rap’s most infamous beefs. But here, he presents the happens through much more mature eyes – including an attempt to squash the beef. Sadly, he didn’t get to speak with 2pac before he passed, but Nas’ sincerity drips through every bar here.

As mentioned earlier, much of Nas’ recent resurgence can be attributed to Hit-Boy, who has perfected the balance of lacing Nas with top-notch, trendy production without totally tossing him outside his comfort zone. Much like King’s Disease Uno, Nas has no problem putting a trap track in a chokehold. On “YKTV” he muses, “Imagine Lil Uzi on a Preemo beat/Imagine N-A-S on a Migos beat.” Well, you don’t have to imagine the latter, as he absolutely owns that track, as well as “40 Side.” But where he really shines is on the deeply soulful, jazzy cuts that make up the majority of the album – this is the kind of music we wished Kanye West was still making, instead of live streaming himself sleeping in an Atlanta bathroom.

“Store Run” is pure, uncut Nasir, where he outright demands the flowers he deserves. The soulful backdrop just adds to the potency:

What’s your exit plan? Face to face with my omens, I never ran
Stood on stages most never can, pyrotechnics and leather pants
Shifting the culture
Mention me with Mick Jagger and Bono like you’re ‘posed to
I’m standing next to rookies, somehow they’re looking older
The altitude of matter so cold, it’ll make your nose run
How you expect to get love if you don’t show none?

“Rare” starts out sounding like a track from a Genesis game before flipping midway through, increasing the intensity, while “No Phony Love” with Charlie Wilson is every bit the crash course in romance you’d expect.

And the moments of introspection are heavy too. Hit-Boy brings out the church organ for “My Bible” so Nas can get “spiritual like a deep cut from Shirley Caesar.”

Second chapter, and you get what you give
It’s power in how you live, I sit and talk with the kids
And tell ’em just how it is, go straight to avoid the bids
Livin’ fast can wait, stay down and work on your grades
Speak gospel for the next generation
You can have it all, just don’t side with Satan

Sure some may call it preachy but in reality it’s just an outpouring of years of accumulated wisdom. “Moments” is filled with similar life lessons, reminding the listener to stop and smell the roses while also crowning himself the “Archbishop of sharp spittin, sports car whippin” – a line so ridiculously awesome that only Nas can pull it off without eye rolls.

But without question, the biggest talking point of the set has to be the return of Ms. Lauryn Hill on “Nobody.” No, we’re not talking about a reused sample or even vocal contribution on the hook. Nah, we get the infamous L-Boogie herself, who proves to have bars for eons:

Now let me give it to you balanced and with clarity
I don’t need to turn myself into a parody
I don’t, I don’t do the s*** you do for popularity
They clearly didn’t understand when I said I get out, apparently
My awareness like Keanu in The Matrix
I’m savin’ souls and y’all complainin’ ’bout my lateness
Now it’s illegal for someone to walk in greatness

Lauryn might not come when you want her, but those bars are always right on time. And this is why she’ll forever be recognized as one of the greatest women to ever touch a microphone.

King’s Disease 2 does what I figured was impossible when it was announced a couple of weeks ago – surpasses its predecessor in every conceivable way. From production to concepts to pacing, everything flows tighter, hits harder and thinks more deeply.

Sure, it’s not flawless – “Brunch on Sundays” feels like a bit of a throwaway, even though I appreciate its tribute to black womanhood. Also I’m on the fence about Eminem’s contribution to “EMPD 2” – once again he smashes listeners over the head with his double time flow, which ranges from clever and skillful to off-beat and incomprehensible all in the same verse. Luckily Nas and EMPD themselves pick up the slack.

The album closer “Nas is Good” is the perfect victory lap: “Raised by a queen, that’s the only reason I made it/King’s Disease the reoccurrence, that s*** reinstated.” Time and again, from his humble beginnings in 1994, to his affirmation of power in 2001, to stepping into maturity in 2012 and his introduction to a new generation in 2020, Nas continually has been forced to prove himself worthy of rap’s throne.

Twenty-seven years and counting and that crown is still a perfect fit.

Best tracks: “Store Run,” “Death Row East,” “Nas is Good,” “No Phony Love”

4.5 stars out of 5