Nas

Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, known mononymously as Nas, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, and record producer born September 14, 1973. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he began his musical career in 1989 under the moniker "Nasty Nas" and recorded demos under Large Professor's mentorship, making his recording debut on Main Source's 1991 song "Live at the Barbeque". After signing with Columbia Records in 1992, Nas released his debut studio album Illmatic on April 19, 1994—an inductee of the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry regarded as one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time.

His second album It Was Written (1996) debuted atop the Billboard 200 and sold over a quarter-million units in its first week; the lead single "If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)" featuring Lauryn Hill propelled Nas into mainstream success. His third and fourth albums I Am and Nastradamus (both 1999) faced criticism for inconsistency and commercial overreach. From 2001 to 2005, Nas engaged in a highly publicized feud with fellow New York rapper Jay-Z, marked by the diss track "Ether," while releasing Stillmatic (2001), God's Son (2002), and Street's Disciple (2004) to restore his critical standing. He later reconciled with Jay-Z and signed with Def Jam Recordings in 2006, adopting a politicized direction with Hip Hop Is Dead (2006) and his untitled ninth studio album (2008).

In 2010, Nas released Distant Relatives, a collaborative album with Damian Marley that donated its royalties to active African charities. His tenth studio album Life Is Good (2012) was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards. After thirteen nominations, King's Disease (2020) won his first Grammy for Best Rap Album at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards. His five subsequent albums—King's Disease II, Magic (2021), King's Disease III (2022), Magic 2, and Magic 3 (2023)—were each produced entirely by Hit-Boy and met with critical praise. In 2025, Nas released his long-awaited collaborative album with DJ Premier.

As a Virgo born in 1973, Nas embodies life-path 7's introspective mastery; rappers serve as lyricists who craft narratives, record albums, perform live, and shape cultural discourse. Outside recording, he serves as associate publisher of Mass Appeal magazine and co-founded Mass Appeal Records, signing artists including Dave East, N.O.R.E., Run the Jewels, and Swizz Beatz. He has released seventeen studio albums since 1994, ten of which are certified gold, platinum, or multi-platinum in the U.S.. Nas has been ranked second by The Source on their "Top 50 Lyricists of All Time" list in 2012, fourth on MTV's Annual Hottest MCs in the Game list in 2013, and named the "Greatest MC of All Time" by About.com in 2014; Billboard featured him on their "10 Best Rappers of All Time" list in 2015.