Nas's 1994 debut, Illmatic, is hands down one of the greatest rap LPs of all time. Open to debate is why he ditched his lyrical genius and raw, gully beats to go pop on his next three albums. On his fifth solo LP, Nas returns to his grimy, hardcore roots. On "Ether," Nas disses Jay-Z mercilessly (a response to Jay-Z's anti-Nas stabs on "Takeover" from The Blueprint). Nas then proceeds to dis Prodigy of Mobb Deep and a whole slew of other Queensbridge-based MCs on "Destroy and Rebuild." When he's not busy tearing into fellow New York-based MCs, Nas pulls a politico routine on "My Country," questioning the blind patriotism of many African Americans, flips rhymes with former Firm compadre AZ on "The Flyest," and pays homage to Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G on "Got Ur Self a...." However, the albums finest artistic moment comes on "Rewind," where Nas crafts a sexploit and murder-filled 'hood narrative in which the story and wordplay are recited in reverse (think Tarantino's Pulp Fiction on celluloid). With beats supplied by DJ Premier, Large Professor, and Swizz Beatz, Nas has arguably reclaimed his throne as the MC king of New York. --Dalton Higgins