Illmatic - is it worth the hype?

SGR · 01-04-2013, 06:20 AM

The production on Illmatic was good for its time, but if they knew that this was going to be hailed as the greatest hip hop album ever, they may have a produced it in a way that ages better.

Reasonable Doubt's production thus far has stood up much better.

**Goofle** · 01-04-2013, 06:22 AM

It depends what production you want to listen to. Old school Hop Hop beats (more jazzy or boom bap) is coming back in a big way.

SGR · 01-04-2013, 06:35 AM

^I just don't think it ages well. The new jazzy/boom bap production is different than Illmatics.

**Goofle** · 01-04-2013, 06:41 AM

I agree that it sounds old in terms of quality, but the actual production in of itself hasn't aged for me.

anticipation · 01-04-2013, 10:50 AM

Anyone who thinks Reasonable Doubt is anywhere near Illmatic's zipcode should get their head examined.

SGR · 01-05-2013, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by anticipation

Anyone who thinks Reasonable Doubt is anywhere near Illmatic's zipcode should get their head examined.

Well, technically, both Nas and Jay are from NY so I'm thinking Reasonable Doubt IS close to Illmatic's zipcode.

~~Cuthbert~~ · 01-27-2014, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barbarian_Dros

ahah good call, but i agree, Illmatic destroys reasonable doubt as far as i'm concerned. It was a landmark in that illmatic was backed by sony so it was one of the first (non-poppy-vanilla-ice-ish) albums with multiple big name hiphop producers (usually it would be one or two producers and a rapper). Pete rock's "the world is yours" is a timeless beat in my opinion, the premo track is nice and halftime's a great song.

Welcome mate.

Illmatic is clearly better agreed, there's no argument. Illmatic when it first came out was an undeniable, instant classic (first 5 mic album from a debut artist). Reasonable Doubt when it came out was just good, it didn't become a classic until later on when Jay-Z claimed it was.

So it's a classic because Jay-Z said it was

. A lot Jay-Z's acclaim just comes from him telling you he is the greatest.

dca · 01-27-2014, 02:49 PM

I don't see why Reasonable Doubt's production is supposed to have aged better than Illmatic. What does 'aged well' even mean in a hip hop context anyway? Today's production can't hold a candle to the mid 90s era.

but to answer the question, yes it's worth the hype. Illmatic is close to flawless, musically and lyrically. Nas never came close to matching that cocky, streetwise flow again. I don't really see how anyone could try and argue with someone claiming it's the best rap album ever...it has all the elements of a perfect rap album.

~~Soulflower~~ · 01-27-2014, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by christian benteke

well is it?

I think it is. It's flawless.

Illmatic? of course

It is one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time, its a CLASSIC!

Reasonable Doubt is soooo overrated. People just hype that album up because its JAY Z's best effort. There were way better hip hop albums from the 90's

totosama · 02-03-2014, 03:17 PM

I liked Illmatic when it came out. At the time I was too young to really know anything about hip-hop, MC skills, producers, the hype... I just really liked every aspect of the album.
Years of 'learning' about hip-hop (and music in general) later, I am able to understand why it is a classic but I also still enjoy it without over-analyzing it.
This is a great album from start to finish.

01-04-2013, 06:20 AM	#71 (permalink)
SGR No Ice In My Bourbon Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: /dev/null Posts: 4,327	The production on Illmatic was good for its time, but if they knew that this was going to be hailed as the greatest hip hop album ever, they may have a produced it in a way that ages better. Reasonable Doubt's production thus far has stood up much better.

01-04-2013, 06:35 AM	#73 (permalink)
SGR No Ice In My Bourbon Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: /dev/null Posts: 4,327	^I just don't think it ages well. The new jazzy/boom bap production is different than Illmatics.

01-04-2013, 10:50 AM	#75 (permalink)
anticipation Music Addict Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 3,565	Anyone who thinks Reasonable Doubt is anywhere near Illmatic's zipcode should get their head examined.

01-27-2014, 02:49 PM	#78 (permalink)
dca Music Addict Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 69	I don't see why Reasonable Doubt's production is supposed to have aged better than Illmatic. What does 'aged well' even mean in a hip hop context anyway? Today's production can't hold a candle to the mid 90s era. but to answer the question, yes it's worth the hype. Illmatic is close to flawless, musically and lyrically. Nas never came close to matching that cocky, streetwise flow again. I don't really see how anyone could try and argue with someone claiming it's the best rap album ever...it has all the elements of a perfect rap album.

02-03-2014, 03:17 PM	#80 (permalink)
totosama Music Addict Join Date: Feb 2014 Location: Toulouse / Yokkaichi Posts: 78	I liked Illmatic when it came out. At the time I was too young to really know anything about hip-hop, MC skills, producers, the hype... I just really liked every aspect of the album. Years of 'learning' about hip-hop (and music in general) later, I am able to understand why it is a classic but I also still enjoy it without over-analyzing it. This is a great album from start to finish.