Common’s second album cemented his status in the Hip Hop scene in the mid-’90s, and he’s now reflected on the inspirations that helped elevate his performance at the time.
During a chat with Miss Info at EEEEEEATSCON on Saturday (July 13), the Chicago-based rapper recalled how the veteran media personality played a key role in his rise.
“I’m almost done with the album,” he shares of “Resurrection,” which was released in 1994. “That album wouldn’t be what it is if I didn’t have a copy of Nas’ first “Illmatic” [from Miss Info ]. I went back into the studio and realized the level we needed to get to, and it was amazing.”
Speaking about his new joint album with Pete Rock, the 52-year-old added: “Pete Rock, who produced ‘The World Is Yours’, is currently performing live with us. We played ‘The World Is Yours’ and I rhymed one of my verses from “Resurrection” over that beat, so it kind of came full circle.”
Common and Miss Info revealed that after Miss Info reviewed Nas’ album “Illmatic” in The Source magazine (with 5 microphones), she gave Common the first press copy of the album, which inspired inspired Common to return to the studio and work on a new and improved version of “Resurrection.”
Last year, Men’s Health published an interview with Common in which he opened up about Hip Hop’s arduous journey and Nas’ role in bringing the genre to where it is today.
“I remember being at a show and then walking out of the show, and a guy came up to me and said, ‘Common, I really like your music. I want to tell you that your song ‘Retrospect For Life’ made me decide to have a baby,’” he recounts, illustrating the importance of writing songs that people can relate to.
Nas reacted when “Illmatic” was named the Greatest Rap Album of All Time on July 12, 2024.
“I wrote that song because I went through that experience, and there was a moment when I was on the way to the abortion clinic, and the mother of my child decided, ‘We can’t do this anymore, ‘ because this happens after having had one abortion. Let’s figure out whatever we have to do. That situation shows that when you take experiences from a real place, it just resonates in a different way.”
Common continued to highlight Nas’ influences: “That’s why we reached out when Nas talked about what he said on ‘Illmatic.’ He experienced it, and the way he recounts it is beautiful. In ‘One Love’, he talks to his friend in prison. It is one of the greatest songs ever written.”Previously, Common said that the Queensbridge MC had changed his views.
“His mentality is on a whole different level, so it just made me start thinking on a different level,” he said during an appearance on the Bridge Podcast. “’Illmatic’ is one of those things. Like, okay — and I was probably 20, 21 years old — that was like, life-changing for me.”
The rap veterans have collaborated twice in their careers. In 2004, Common and Nas were featured on a remix of the song “Why?” by Jadakiss with Styles P and Anthony Hamilton. A few years later, in 2011, Common released “The Dreamer/The Believer,” which featured Nas on the track “Ghetto Dreams.”
The pair are even in talks to make a joint album titled “Nas Dot Com,” which Common shared with NME in 2019.
“We actually talked about doing an album together,” he told the outlet. “We were going to call it ‘Nas Dot Com,’ but we never started working on it. We never actually sit down and start working. And to be honest, most of my time and focus is on getting the films done.”
