Last Friday night,
Nas was on
Real Time With Bill Maher to promote the soon-to-be released twentieth anniversary edition of
Illmatic. The two men discussed music in general, and
Maher joked about whether
Nas is the type of rapper to put a pop star on a hook just to get more recognition, and
Nas said he would do that if it was a pop star he liked.
Bill Maher then asked
Nas what Pop stars he liked, and he said...
"Is Adele a pop star? I like Adele. I like Adele. Uhm! I'm old school, I like Sade (Adu). I wouldn't call her a pop star...she is...she is...she takes her time." (Real Time With Bill Maher)
Those are definitely pop stars with a lot of soul and depth in their music, not the microwave type, so I feel Nas on his decision.
"When you come from the era of Ray Charles, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson, it gets hard to get used to Lil Wayne. I just can’t handle it. There are some good singers out there. Mary J Blige can sing, so can Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera. I know who they are. I also know who they aren’t, too."
True...i feel him. There are some acts I don't like that are popping now too, and I am just 33, so I can understand how an 81 year old man must feel; especially someone that worked so closely with Michael Jackson. I like his choice of who he is feeling in this time frame...those are the people I too listen to. I think I would add Brandy to that list, and I am good. Most others are just so electric, and depend too much on their popularity to get away with whatever they claim to be creativity. I do try to chill sometimes, and think maybe I am the one that is stuck in the past. But really, all I want is real music.