Nas

Who cares that the title was excised by Pussies On Top? This is the real Hip Hop is Dead. Except it's America is Dead. Slyer and less dry than the Roots' excellent-and-still-gaining Rising Down, Nas is his smartest and most motivated album since his last smartest and most motivated one (he only has three). And while there will be more on this in my Illmatic essay for WWIA later this summer, anyone who thinks "sleep is the cousin of death" or "fuck with your soul like ether" is deeper than "Coon Picnic (These are Our Heroes)" or "Poppa Was a Playa" needs to check themself before they riggedy wreck themself.