Nas Thinks It’s ‘Corny’ to Continue Celebrating Illmatic 25 Years Later: ‘I’ve Made Over 10 [Albums]’

This years marks the 25th anniversary of Nas’ debut album, Illmatic, and it has been dubbed as one of the most important bodies of work in Hip Hop history.

The rapper did an interview with Haute Living, and he made it clear that he’s grateful for the success of the collection, but he’s ready to move on.

“Twenty-five years is a lifetime. So I did another Symphony Orchestra show for Illmatic this year; I got another plaque for it,” Nas said. “I’m very grateful—it’s so crazy—but to celebrate one album when I’ve made over 10, all the things I’ve worked on—and I’ve been working for so long—to celebrate one album over all else is corny to me. I don’t want to celebrate another Illmatic anything. I’m done. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for appreciating that record, but it’s over.”

Nas is a savvy business man and has numerous ventures and passion projects.

“Maybe [I’ll open] a new level bookstore, maybe [I’ll do] Broadway,” Nas said. “I do three things at a time; that’s how I live. The next three things I do, I hope they’re more exciting than anything that I’ve ever done.”

He also spoke about releasing The Lost Tapes sequel. “The original Lost Tapes came out 17 years ago, and there have been a lot of people who wanted to see me [put out a sequel],” he explains, noting, “I can’t be happier about it. I never thought we’d get a chance to put out another one.”