Nas & Travis Scott Discuss The Power Of Hip-Hop & Why Its Messages Cannot Be Stopped

Erick Sermon sometimes gets more credit for his production than his rhymes. However, for more than 30 years, the double-threat has penned some lyrics that are forever tattooed on the Hip-Hop consciousness. That has been true with EPMD, Def Squad, and alone. The MC who once proclaimed “I wish music would adopt me” has more than proven his dedication.

Now, only two months removed from a freestyle single that saw him pair with DJ Gumba on “CHILL” (embedded below) the Long Island, NY spitter is at it again. Appropriately, “Give It To Em,” a signature Erick Sermon-produced track, bleeds the funk and flair we’ve grown accustomed.

Erick Sermon & Big K.R.I.T. Join Forces To Celebrate Southern Women (Audio)

After warming up his vocals and shouting out his return to form alongside Gumba for the second time in as many months, the legendary talent takes time to address emcees who have lost their way. “Ya time’s up/ you were hot a couple of summers / Yes, the kids used to look up to you / What happened? (that’s not the way to do it) ya singin’ now, you ain’t rappin’,” spits the Green-Eyed Bandit.



Immediately after that, he admits to being a workaholic – a trait that has seen him continue to push the envelope in various musical environments (Fresh, Priority, Dreamworks, Universal, etc.), and collaborations, including his most renowned days with EPMD. More than 30 years removed from his first musical endeavor, work ethic is something The Green-Eyed Bandit’s still respects:

“I love my job, yes, I go to work all the time / I puts in hours with the rhyme / So when I relay it, no need to okay it / They play it when I say it / Any place they’ll pay it / The Rick Rubin of the new school… but who cares, new cars are driven / They ask for more, and more is what I give em.

Erick Sermon Details EPMD’s Terrible 1st Contract & How They Got The Big Payback

Having been away from the game since his 2015 release, E.S.P. (Erick Sermon’s Perception), E Double provides a fitting reminder of his consistency as he cruises through the second and final verse:

I stepped away from the game / I wanted back the fame / I wanted back the name / Holla back, I’m the same with a stack / I’m the same in person when I rap / The same muthaf*cka in the trap / I got money, but no need to waste it / I did buy my girl a new bracelet / But not from Jacob, somebody else laced it.

Diamond D’s New Album Features Erick Sermon, Pharoahe Monch, Talib Kweli & More

“Give It To Em” and “CHILL” are fitting appetizers to the main course that will be his eighth solo album, Vernia, an ode to his grandmother who died two years ago. The record, which he began recording around the same time period, boasts features among the likes of Styles P, AZ, Shaquille O’Neal, David Banner Too Short, Devin The Dude and more. Last month, E-Double released the Big K.R.I.T.-assisted “That Girl.”

If Gumba and Erick Sermon’s working rapport feels just right, expect more. The Long Island-bred DJ is set to combine the aforementioned tracks with other Def Squad efforts to produce an official mixtape featuring the entire crew.

DJ Premier Discusses The Making Of Gang Starr’s Hard To Earn 25 Years Later

#BonusBeat: DJ Gumba and Erick Sermon’s “CHILL”:



Erick Sermon sometimes gets more credit for his production than his rhymes. However, for more than 30 years, the double-threat has penned some lyrics that are forever tattooed on the Hip-Hop consciousness. That has been true with EPMD, Def Squad, and alone. The MC who once proclaimed “I wish music would adopt me” has more than proven his dedication.

Now, only two months removed from a freestyle single that saw him pair with DJ Gumba on “CHILL” (embedded below) the Long Island, NY spitter is at it again. Appropriately, “Give It To Em,” a signature Erick Sermon-produced track, bleeds the funk and flair we’ve grown accustomed.

Erick Sermon & Big K.R.I.T. Join Forces To Celebrate Southern Women (Audio)

After warming up his vocals and shouting out his return to form alongside Gumba for the second time in as many months, the legendary talent takes time to address emcees who have lost their way. “Ya time’s up/ you were hot a couple of summers / Yes, the kids used to look up to you / What happened? (that’s not the way to do it) ya singin’ now, you ain’t rappin’,” spits the Green-Eyed Bandit.



Immediately after that, he admits to being a workaholic – a trait that has seen him continue to push the envelope in various musical environments (Fresh, Priority, Dreamworks, Universal, etc.), and collaborations, including his most renowned days with EPMD. More than 30 years removed from his first musical endeavor, work ethic is something The Green-Eyed Bandit’s still respects:

“I love my job, yes, I go to work all the time / I puts in hours with the rhyme / So when I relay it, no need to okay it / They play it when I say it / Any place they’ll pay it / The Rick Rubin of the new school… but who cares, new cars are driven / They ask for more, and more is what I give em.

Erick Sermon Details EPMD’s Terrible 1st Contract & How They Got The Big Payback

Having been away from the game since his 2015 release, E.S.P. (Erick Sermon’s Perception), E Double provides a fitting reminder of his consistency as he cruises through the second and final verse:

I stepped away from the game / I wanted back the fame / I wanted back the name / Holla back, I’m the same with a stack / I’m the same in person when I rap / The same muthaf*cka in the trap / I got money, but no need to waste it / I did buy my girl a new bracelet / But not from Jacob, somebody else laced it.

Diamond D’s New Album Features Erick Sermon, Pharoahe Monch, Talib Kweli & More

“Give It To Em” and “CHILL” are fitting appetizers to the main course that will be his eighth solo album, Vernia, an ode to his grandmother who died two years ago. The record, which he began recording around the same time period, boasts features among the likes of Styles P, AZ, Shaquille O’Neal, David Banner Too Short, Devin The Dude and more. Last month, E-Double released the Big K.R.I.T.-assisted “That Girl.”

If Gumba and Erick Sermon’s working rapport feels just right, expect more. The Long Island-bred DJ is set to combine the aforementioned tracks with other Def Squad efforts to produce an official mixtape featuring the entire crew.

DJ Premier Discusses The Making Of Gang Starr’s Hard To Earn 25 Years Later

#BonusBeat: DJ Gumba and Erick Sermon’s “CHILL”:



In 2017, Nas and Travis Scott worked together alongside DJ Khaled for video single “It’s Secured” (embedded below). On paper, these artists may seem to represent different corners of Rap music, even while both have close collaborative ties to Kanye West.

Nas burst on the scene in the early 1990s. His debut album, Illmatic, appeased many purists, from The Source magazine to the readers of Ambrosia For Heads (who crowned it the Greatest Rap Album Of All-Time back in 2016). Nas’ most beloved music fits in the canon of East Coast boom-bap. The 45-year-old MC paints vivid pictures with words. Although he tends to shun the spotlight at times, his art often presents introspective lyrics deal with a bygone era of New York City, street crime, and overcoming a grim existence to becoming a mogul.

Nas Sounds Truly Inspired On A Beautiful New Song With Amy Winehouse

Meanwhile, Travis Scott is from Houston, Texas. His music often defies genre. This 26-year-old sings, raps, and sometimes breaks into an all-out Rock Star display in his elaborate stage shows. Scott has a child as well as an ongoing relationship with Kylie Jenner, making him part of the globe’s most prominent celebrity family. Last year’s Astroworld topped the charts with a concoction of music that blends Rap, R&B, Psychedelic Rock, EDM, Screw music, and more. AFH selected it among last year’s best.

However, Nas and Travis Scott have plenty in common, as a conversation moderated by Playboy‘ Marcus Reeves shows. These two artists sit together in the back of a Bentley with L’s burning. Their discussion is about Hip-Hop, and how it continues to evolve and move with the same principles and purpose.

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Scott praises Nas’ era. “I’m guessing Hip-Hop used to be about bars and just a unique flow over beats. It was like straight soul, and man, you’re telling your story; it was just bar to bar, killing it, and not really about anything being catchy. It was just really raw,” he says. “The past generation knocked down so many doors where, you know, they were spitting a lot of pain, man. They was dealing with a lot of police stuff. We’re still dealing with that now, but it wasn’t so free. Now we got more of a voice at the label. We can kind of put out our own music whenever. You and I could do a song during this interview and upload it right now if we wanted to.”

Nas reacts, “That’s right. Being an MC or a rapper, you got to change with the times. I can stay me, sure, but the challenge is to stay with what’s going on. If you look at the great ones from back then, a lot of them have four albums; they had short careers. That’s changed now.” He also comments, “You said it was once about writing down the pain and all of that. Nowadays the pain has changed. We’re after different things. We broke past the barriers. We understand what we need to do and we’re in control of what we’re doing, and no one can stop it now. No one can tell us what to do, what we can’t do. Rap music can’t be stopped now.”

Nas Demands A Second Look At His Album With A Stunning Short Film (Video)

Mentioning Scott’s action figure, Nas tells Travis he wishes he could execute things like that during the ’90s. He also explains how he admires the artist’s attitude towards the spotlight. “You [have been] doing something I wish I did when I was in my twenties, which was not giving the camera much. If you go back to one of the interviews I did on Video Music Box, I don’t look at the camera that much. Through the years, I would do award shows or whatever, and then I would skip the red carpet. The record label would be mad at me, that I’m up here and I’m selling all these units, and I won’t even walk the carpet. When you cover your face, so you don’t look down, I think, Damn, I wish…I live vicariously through you when you do that, bro, because I feel you on that. You [are] here to do the music and leave your stain on this world. Whether you be in front of them cameras or not, you don’t even care.” Scott agrees, despite his defacto celebrity status. “I don’t care. That’s my whole sh*t, bro. It’s about the music. I just express what a kid my age is going through in a time.”

Scott goes on to describe his expressive nature. Whereas Nas has made songs like “Sly Fox” and “What Goes Around,” Scott admits that he is careful to be about activism in his bars. “I wouldn’t say I don’t feel compelled to speak on political issues; sometimes you just don’t want to speak too much on stuff you don’t know much about. It’s not like I’m not thinking about what’s going on in the world. I’m an expressive artist, but with media and sh*t, it gets misconstrued. As I’m sitting with you right now, I’m still figuring this out, you know?”

Travis Scott’s Sick New Visual Shows How Great Music Videos Can Still Be (Video)

Nas responds, “Politics definitely affects the way I think, but the way I write is my day-to-day life. I did a song talking about daughters, because I have a daughter. ‘Daughters’ was nominated for a Grammy. I feel it—that’s why I wrote it—but I had no idea it would be acknowledged like that when it came out. So I write about day-to-day stuff, and I don’t plan to write anything political, because then it’s forced. It ain’t a natural expression.” Moments later, he adds, “Ray Charles and Billie Holiday and all of those great acts were entertaining and going through worse times than now. They were inspiring us. When Michael Jackson did Thriller, that was during Reaganomics. He gave us something to look at other than the politics, the propaganda, the lies. He gave us inspiration.” He praises efforts like Astroworld in a challenging political climate. “The politicians want our full attention. They’re hustling. I’m not getting caught up in that. I make music about life, and life comes before politics.”

The conversation closes with the two men talking about the sport of Rap. “This sh*t is a blood sport,” says Nas. “This sh*t ain’t easy. This is one of the hardest games ever. I love it right now because it’s testing you. What are you made of? Can you survive? What do you have to offer in 2019?” The MC who famously called sleep “the cousin of death” has not shifted his stance. “Because the moment you sleep, the moment you blink your eyes too long, your spot is taken. And that’s the excitement of it.”

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Travis reacts, “There’s no barrier. There’s just so much of a flow of things that we’re trying to—we’re gettin’ it out, and we’re expressing it in a different way: what’s happening during our time in life, what’s happening in the streets.”

Heads who want to see vintage footage from Video Music Box can experience and support it at AFH TV. We are currently offering free 30-day trials.

Andrew Yang Is The Rakim Of Politics (Video)

#BonusBeat: DJ Khaled, Nas, and Travis Scott’s “It’s Secured”:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD3QUaTymAM]

In 2017, Nas and Travis Scott worked together alongside DJ Khaled for video single “It’s Secured” (embedded below). On paper, these artists may seem to represent different corners of Rap music, even while both have close collaborative ties to Kanye West.

Nas burst on the scene in the early 1990s. His debut album, Illmatic, appeased many purists, from The Source magazine to the readers of Ambrosia For Heads (who crowned it the Greatest Rap Album Of All-Time back in 2016). Nas’ most beloved music fits in the canon of East Coast boom-bap. The 45-year-old MC paints vivid pictures with words. Although he tends to shun the spotlight at times, his art often presents introspective lyrics deal with a bygone era of New York City, street crime, and overcoming a grim existence to becoming a mogul.

Nas Sounds Truly Inspired On A Beautiful New Song With Amy Winehouse

Meanwhile, Travis Scott is from Houston, Texas. His music often defies genre. This 26-year-old sings, raps, and sometimes breaks into an all-out Rock Star display in his elaborate stage shows. Scott has a child as well as an ongoing relationship with Kylie Jenner, making him part of the globe’s most prominent celebrity family. Last year’s Astroworld topped the charts with a concoction of music that blends Rap, R&B, Psychedelic Rock, EDM, Screw music, and more. AFH selected it among last year’s best.

However, Nas and Travis Scott have plenty in common, as a conversation moderated by Playboy‘ Marcus Reeves shows. These two artists sit together in the back of a Bentley with L’s burning. Their discussion is about Hip-Hop, and how it continues to evolve and move with the same principles and purpose.

Cormega Breaks Down His Evocative New EP & Why The Fans Matter The Most

Scott praises Nas’ era. “I’m guessing Hip-Hop used to be about bars and just a unique flow over beats. It was like straight soul, and man, you’re telling your story; it was just bar to bar, killing it, and not really about anything being catchy. It was just really raw,” he says. “The past generation knocked down so many doors where, you know, they were spitting a lot of pain, man. They was dealing with a lot of police stuff. We’re still dealing with that now, but it wasn’t so free. Now we got more of a voice at the label. We can kind of put out our own music whenever. You and I could do a song during this interview and upload it right now if we wanted to.”

Nas reacts, “That’s right. Being an MC or a rapper, you got to change with the times. I can stay me, sure, but the challenge is to stay with what’s going on. If you look at the great ones from back then, a lot of them have four albums; they had short careers. That’s changed now.” He also comments, “You said it was once about writing down the pain and all of that. Nowadays the pain has changed. We’re after different things. We broke past the barriers. We understand what we need to do and we’re in control of what we’re doing, and no one can stop it now. No one can tell us what to do, what we can’t do. Rap music can’t be stopped now.”

Nas Demands A Second Look At His Album With A Stunning Short Film (Video)

Mentioning Scott’s action figure, Nas tells Travis he wishes he could execute things like that during the ’90s. He also explains how he admires the artist’s attitude towards the spotlight. “You [have been] doing something I wish I did when I was in my twenties, which was not giving the camera much. If you go back to one of the interviews I did on Video Music Box, I don’t look at the camera that much. Through the years, I would do award shows or whatever, and then I would skip the red carpet. The record label would be mad at me, that I’m up here and I’m selling all these units, and I won’t even walk the carpet. When you cover your face, so you don’t look down, I think, Damn, I wish…I live vicariously through you when you do that, bro, because I feel you on that. You [are] here to do the music and leave your stain on this world. Whether you be in front of them cameras or not, you don’t even care.” Scott agrees, despite his defacto celebrity status. “I don’t care. That’s my whole sh*t, bro. It’s about the music. I just express what a kid my age is going through in a time.”

Scott goes on to describe his expressive nature. Whereas Nas has made songs like “Sly Fox” and “What Goes Around,” Scott admits that he is careful to be about activism in his bars. “I wouldn’t say I don’t feel compelled to speak on political issues; sometimes you just don’t want to speak too much on stuff you don’t know much about. It’s not like I’m not thinking about what’s going on in the world. I’m an expressive artist, but with media and sh*t, it gets misconstrued. As I’m sitting with you right now, I’m still figuring this out, you know?”

Travis Scott’s Sick New Visual Shows How Great Music Videos Can Still Be (Video)

Nas responds, “Politics definitely affects the way I think, but the way I write is my day-to-day life. I did a song talking about daughters, because I have a daughter. ‘Daughters’ was nominated for a Grammy. I feel it—that’s why I wrote it—but I had no idea it would be acknowledged like that when it came out. So I write about day-to-day stuff, and I don’t plan to write anything political, because then it’s forced. It ain’t a natural expression.” Moments later, he adds, “Ray Charles and Billie Holiday and all of those great acts were entertaining and going through worse times than now. They were inspiring us. When Michael Jackson did Thriller, that was during Reaganomics. He gave us something to look at other than the politics, the propaganda, the lies. He gave us inspiration.” He praises efforts like Astroworld in a challenging political climate. “The politicians want our full attention. They’re hustling. I’m not getting caught up in that. I make music about life, and life comes before politics.”

The conversation closes with the two men talking about the sport of Rap. “This sh*t is a blood sport,” says Nas. “This sh*t ain’t easy. This is one of the hardest games ever. I love it right now because it’s testing you. What are you made of? Can you survive? What do you have to offer in 2019?” The MC who famously called sleep “the cousin of death” has not shifted his stance. “Because the moment you sleep, the moment you blink your eyes too long, your spot is taken. And that’s the excitement of it.”

Dave Chappelle Teaches Will Smith How To Do Standup Comedy (Video)

Travis reacts, “There’s no barrier. There’s just so much of a flow of things that we’re trying to—we’re gettin’ it out, and we’re expressing it in a different way: what’s happening during our time in life, what’s happening in the streets.”

Heads who want to see vintage footage from Video Music Box can experience and support it at AFH TV. We are currently offering free 30-day trials.

Andrew Yang Is The Rakim Of Politics (Video)

#BonusBeat: DJ Khaled, Nas, and Travis Scott’s “It’s Secured”:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PD3QUaTymAM]