Key Takeaways

• Nas revisits his Hip Hop is Dead statement, offering a more nuanced take on the genre’s current state.
• He praises Kendrick Lamar, Clipse, and Mass Appeal’s Legend Has It series as key forces in Hip Hop’s 2025 revival.
• Nas underscores the genre’s longevity, crediting both veteran and emerging artists for maintaining its balance.

Hip Hop may need life support. Nas dropped a rose on its grave when he titled his eighth studio album Hip Hop Is Dead in 2006. The declaration sparked debate across the culture, with rappers like Jeezy feeling indirectly called out by the Illmatic maestro. The New York legend later explained that the bold imagery and title of his project never singled anyone out, nor did he intend the LP to be a catalyst for division.

In a new Complex interview, he admitted that the art movement is truly immortal. In the video published on Wednesday (Oct. 15), Nas Escobar explained, “I used to say [that] Hip Hop is dead. It is kind of dead, but we have to think about it, in a sense, like that. Because if you think about it, this year is really incredible. I mean, Kendrick’s been on a roll, Clipse [is] cooking, [there’s the] Legend Has It [series], Mass Appeal.”

Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” run set the tone for 2025, followed by Clipse’s Let God Sort Em Out album, their first in about 16 years, which largely reenergized Hip Hop. The two acts are projected as top competitors ahead of the 2026 Grammys, where they are expected to square off for Best Rap Album.

But it’s not just seasoned artists keeping its pulse thumping. “All the younger dudes and the females, all of the females, it’s like Hip Hop is really alive too,” Nas continued. “So, you have the part that’s, that can threaten it, you know, the ignorance — the stuff that’s really, it doesn’t evolve… or it gets too violent — you know, you got the things that can threaten it… But then you also have everything that’s happening this year, too, so it’s a balance.”

Nas says Hip Hop is timeless

Music legends like LL Cool J, Busta Rhymes, Mobb Deep, and even Nas have rolled out celebrated albums in recent years. Although many might consider them past their golden era, the years have only refined their lyricism for the better and proven that talent cannot be defined by age. “I think rap is timeless, and yeah, Hip Hop is timeless,” he said. Moreover, the “If I Ruled the World” wordsmith is certain of his stance that “you can always come back to it as long as the ideas are fresh." He believes artists should focus on “really coming from a place where you feel [it] is real and true to you, and you [are] trying to find something that really resonates with people in a song.”