Nas shows his affection after ‘Illmatic’ is named best rap album of all time

Album rankings will always inspire debate. That’s part of the fun of rankings in the first place. Billboard caused controversy (as do all list-making media) when they decided to release the 100 greatest hip-hop albums of all time. However, their choice for number one was undeniable. Billboard chose Illmatic as the biggest release in the history of the genre, and fans largely agreed that Nas’ 1994 debut was as perfect as an album could be.

Nas reposted the number one placement on his Instagram account on July 12. He also thanked the broadcaster for the Illmatic such a glowing article. “Thanks to @billboard,” he wrote. Of course, the rapper took the time to thank the generations of fans who have Illmatictoo. “N the people,” he added. “We here #1 Illmatic.” Nas also reached number 57 on the Billboard chart with his 1996 album, It was written. The rapper has had a fascinating relationship with his debut over the years. There was a time when he viewed it as an albatross, something that affected the way people listened to the rest of his music.

Over time, however, Nas has made peace with the legacy of Illmatic. It exists in many ways outside of the rest of his catalog. A catalog that has actually gotten better over the last decade. Nas spoke about the gift and curse of releasing a classic debut in 2014. He compared Illmatic to another celebrated debut, Good kid, MAAD Cityand told Complex that there was a lot of pressure to make a follow-up. “They called it the curse of the second album back then,” Nas recalled. “So many artists never got past their first album… It was so crazy that I had to take it seriously.”

Illmatic has gone from being an albatross to being a crown jewel in the eyes of the rapper. Nas released a deluxe version of the album in 2014 to mark its 20th anniversary. He also worked on the acclaimed documentary time is Illmaticwhich documented the making of the album. On the album’s 30th anniversary, which took place in April, Nas praised his collaborators in an Instagram post. “Even though the album leaked months before the release date,” he wrote in the caption, “we are still a part of music history.”