Nas Speaks on Kendrick in New Q&A, Says 'Illmatic,' 'good kid' Comparisons "Not Fair"

Directly following the unveiling of their new Kendrick Lamar cover story, Complex have released an extensive Q&A with Nas regarding the good kid, m.A.A.d city emcee and classic albums. Speaking to writer Insanul Ahmed, the 40-year-old Queens veteran spoke on a variety of topics involving Kendrick Lamar and the process behind classic albums and their follow-ups. One of the most interesting quotes from Nas came regarding comparisons between Kendrick’s major label debut and his own magnum opus, Illmatic. When asked if it was a fair comparison, Nas stated the following:

No, it’s not a fair comparison to me because Illmatic represented a different time and a different expression for different reasons. The times inspired the sound of that—the climate of the music business, the rap game, the industry, the year, and life in itself. It’s not fair to Kendrick’s album either because his album is a brand new expression that represents these times, the sound represents what’s happening now, he’s changing things today.

You can compare them because you can compare me and Kendrick in a lot of ways. But at the same time you have to respect his journey. His journey is his own fresh journey and to compare it with me or anybody else is not fair to him. You gotta respect his music for him. It’s cool to compare it but at the end of the day, allow him to have his own lane.

You can read the full piece over at this location.