Bishop Nehru Will Join Nas On A European Tour Bishop Nehru When did you first hear Illmatic?

Man, I wish I could tell you. Honestly, I don’t even remember. But I was young. I think probably the first time I heard it, I was probably maybe 8 or 9. Around there. My aunt is a huge Nas fan, she has all his tapes. She won tickets on the radio to his concerts and everything. So she is like diehard Nas fan. Ever since I was a kid, he was really playing Nas and into Nas. I think the first time when I could understand it was probably a couple years ago. Maybe, two, three years ago. Even sometimes when I listen to it, I catch new things. It’s a real good album. Real crazy album.



What was your initial reaction?

I guess I could tell you the reaction from a couple of years ago when I heard it again. When I heard it a couple of years ago, it was everything that was coming out a couple years ago, that was when the real trap stuff, Waka Flocka, was coming through strong. That was when that stuff was taking over. In New York, it was the same thing, people were listening to it as well. I was into trap stuff. I liked it, but I don’t like it as in I can listen to it over and over and over and over. I gotta have some type of variety to it.



When I was exploring different types of music around that time a couple years back, I guess I just listened to Nas’ album again. I don’t even know how to explain it. I was just playing it again one day and from the intro to the ending, I was just amazed. It’s just like a total experience. It’s like you can feel that album.



How did it affect you?

I think it affected my rapping style a lot. I think it affected a lot of people’s rap styles. I think that was the first rap album that really changed the structure of how hip-hop was. There wasn’t really too much structure in hip-hop before that. It was still figuring it out. I think Illmatic was one of the first albums to really bring a structure. The verses, the choruses. Everything is really lined up.



If you listen to Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers, which came out a year before, you don’t really hear 16 bars, chorus, 16 bars, chorus. You kind of hear a sloppier, a lot more raw [strucure]. I think Nas was the first person to sit down and make it an art. He decided to really do something with it.



Is there any rapper’s debut album that you feel is in the same league as Illmatic?

I think there’s a lot of albums that are in the same league as Illmatic, just like there’s a lot of basketball players in the same league. It’s just how you rank them. I think there’s some albums up there in the same league. Enter The 36 Chambers, Ready To Die, ‘Pac’s albums. I would name them, but just the discography. Liquid Swords.



What is your favorite song off Illmatic?

“Life’s A Bitch,” “One Time For Your Mind, “Halftime,” “It Ain’t Hard To Tell.” I’m basically naming the tracklist. “NY State Of Mind.” The only reason I can’t pick one favorite because it is so short. It’s only ten tracks. You’re like, "Fuck!" And all the tracks hit. I don’t know. I like all of them. “Memory Lane.”



How does it hold up after 20 years?

I think it still holds up very well. That’s crazy that I can listen to it now 20 years later and it still holds up against anything out. Twenty years later. I think it’s gonna stand 20 more years as well.



