Let There Be Light
Produced by Kanye West.
[NAS]
Let there be light
No gangbanging in New York tonight
Just murals of Biggie Smalls bigger than life
Turn up the kid's mic, because y'all ain't listening right
What's all this talk that Nas got bought?
I'd rather outline my body in white chalk
Ain't nobody been where I been, they at a standstill
This is all overseen by my man Will
This ain't the glorified, just painting of street pictures
There's no guidance or Bibles, just blunts and swishas
Gillette's cut caine in the kitchen
Now every rapper wanna claim he hang with Kenneth Supreme Griffith
It's like the same difference, except when niggas get arraigned
They don't want the same sentence, niggas get to snitching
If I could reverse demises and turn falls to rises
It bring back niggas who was livest
Old hustlers, reminiscing on better days
They home doing nothing, might as well be in the cage
Hating on young brothers, one foot in the grave
They used to love us till we found our own way through the maze
New York set-trippin' and flaggin' got the West Coast laughing
Now Esco's asking what happened
My homegirl from Upper Manhattan
She remembers the Quarters that's Latin
A lot of rat-tat-tat-tatting
The son of the audio cassette era, TEC-wearer
Bullets and baguettes, Benz Bose speaker terror
Demand I get mine till I'm dead, so I can drive something red
Like that horse standing on its hind legs
Since Arnold and Willis in their bunk beds
I wanted bread like Wonder
Not Ned the Wino, like the parents of Lionel
Nas is the ghetto American Idol
No matter what you do, you're never getting my title
I cant sound smart 'cause y'all'll run away
They say I ain't hungry no more, and I don't talk about yay'
Like there's no other way for an ex-hustler
Cake-getter, ex-wig splitter to touch ya - I beg to differ
When you four years in the game, we can have a conversation
Eight years in the game, I invite you on vacation
Ten years in the game, after I've enjoyed my fame
Only then I let you pick my brain
Nas f/ Tre Williams: Let There Be Light
posted by Fletch at 4:24 PM
8 Comments:
A great song is the right combination of beat, hook, and rap. The beat needn't be something you could rock as an instrumental for forever, the hook needn't be all Primo scratches or led by the Harlem Boys choir, and the raps needn't be all-time quotables; instead, each has to just carry its own weight, and, in turn, they'll support each other. I think this is what is at work here. Kanye's drums are quite the active ones, but production-wise, pound for pound, it's probably less of a feat than the earlier Still Dreaming. Tre Williams on the hook is soulful but not astonishing either. And although Nas' raps could stand on their own, it's in this company that they're elevated and where the song soars. Hell, as proof that it's not always the "science" that wins, perhaps the most standout line is the "rat-tat-tat-tatting" bit from the end of the second verse. Or, if it's not that, it's Nas' closing bars from the end of the third verse, which are especially highlighted as the production slims down to let them shine. See, it's all in the chemistry.
Let There Be Light also is the song that probably best summarizes the album altogether: it's nostalgic, frustrated, descriptive, introspective, bitter, but hopeful too. Even the mention of Ill Will gives it that classic Nas feel.
i think this is the strongest song on the album...i think it could also be used as a single too...these are the type of songs that i think almost nobody in the business can do...another song that comes to mind is Street Dreams Remix with R.kelly...they type of songs that just go against everything that is leveled at rap nowadays...this tre wiliams dude is pretty good to but he is gonna be compared to anthony hamilton
Best song on the record hands down. It is easily, the "biggest" one micish sounding song on the record and should be a single. This song is new territory for Nas, the way he talks at the end, about "getting real right" this is a comfortable Nas that knows his place and is no longer fighting for it. "Nas is the ghetto American Idol" is a great line.
We are all in agreeance here. Hot and one of the best on the album.
classic soulful track. When I first saw Tre was on the hook I had my doubts, but he came through nice to complement Kanye on the beat
2nd best track next to blunt ashes, i dont know blunt ashes just makes me look back on my own life and wonder how i lived it and what people will think about me when im gone and what stories theyll tell... but back to this song i really liked everything bout it from the lyrics to the beat even the mood made me jus feel right
Usually wary of Tre Williams but he and Kanye made this track beautiful one of my favs.
Yeah, this has become my favourite track on the album. Everything fits perfectly.
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