KD1 is the album that washed away the “stink” of Nasir (personally I like Nasir but i’m a Stan so I have to acknowledge that the general public didn’t) gave Nas a fresh new sound to build off of for years to come, introduced him to a new generation of rap fans through the collabs with Fivio, Big Sean, Durk, and Ferg, and won Nas his first Grammy.
Plus its got what I believe to be a top 20 Nas song with The Cure.
KD1 is dope as fukk. I still think Parts 2 and 3 (and Magic) are better but thats only because Nas and Hit-Boy found a groove and perfected they’re sound together with each subsequent release.
Put it this way, just because Thriller and Bad were wildly successful, all time classics doesn’t take away from the success and impact of Off The Wall. All three albums are celebrated within Michael’s discography and Quincy is given credit for helping MJ evolve and improve with each album.
Off The Wall they experimented with the (at the time) popular Disco sound. Its got the lush and vibrant love songs (Girlfriend, Its The Falling In Love) the odes to romance lost (She’s Out Of My Life) and the catchy single (Don’t Start Til You Get Enough)
KD1 they experimented with more trap sounding beats. Its got the lush and vibrant love songs (Replace Me, Til The War Is Won) the odes to romance lost (All Bad) and the catchy single (Ultra Black)
Thriller they fused R&B, Pop, and Rock into a sound all its own. Its got the superstar features (Paul McCartney and a overall bigger more ambitious scope with the music videos to match (Beat It, Billie Jean)
KD2 they fused Boom Bap, Drill, West Coast G-Funk, and even a little Southern Trap into a sound all its own. Its got Superstar features (Lauryn Hill, Eminem) and an overall bigger more ambitious scope with music videos to match (Rare, Brunch On Sundays)
Bad they went grander and more epic with the sounds and focused more on Michael’s song writing ( He wrote 10 of the 11 tracks) the album was Michael at his most confident:
“Your lyin' eyes gon' tell you right, ah
So listen up, don't make a fight, ah
Your talk is cheap, you're not a man, ah
You're throwin' stones to hide your hands
Well, they say the sky's the limit
And to me that's really true, ah
But, my friend, you have seen nothin'
Just wait 'til I get through”
Michael at his most vulnerable:
“I'm starting with the man in the mirror
I'm asking him to change his ways
And no message could've been any clearer
If you wanna make the world a better place
Take a look at yourself and then make a change”
Michael at his most confessionary:
“There was a time I used to say, "Girl, I need you"
But who is sorry now?
You really hurt, you used to take and deceive me
Now who is sorry now?
You got a way of making me feel so sorry
I found out right away
Don't you come walkin' beggin' I ain't lovin' you
Don't you get in my way”
KD3 they went grander and more epic with the songs and focused more on Nas song writing (there are no features across 17 tracks) the album is Nas at his most confident:
“I didn′t have to die so that they could call me the great one
Didn′t take a couple albums, people said it from day one”
Nas at his most vulnerable:
“Bold, beautiful, dangerous
And I blocked out the hate that was aimed at us
Community love, providing jobs
Why would you try to come for me, why you ain't proud of Nas?”
Nas at his most confessionary:
“Time is precious
One day I might need my diaper changed inside a convalescent The soul is different than the flesh is
Life is teachin' me more, wisdom and ignorance is kin
To have peace, you need war
By the time you see the stars in the skies they already burnt out Same way these dudes be shinin' but been burnt out
But we don't change, as we get stuck in our ways
We just act like we agree so we can end the exchange
What's meant for you is sent to you
But you could be the problem, it's not always them my dude”
….that doesn’t match the context of the full line. He’s talking goat talk.
