Nas Gets Nostalgic at Life is Good Album Listening Party

Nas gave fans a sneak peek into his 10th studio album titled Life is Good, at the New Museum in New York City. Truly a celebration, the intimate space was plastered with memorabilia of The Don himself, with photos of his current singles as well as a blast from his musical career past. A slew of hits from Nas’ catalog welcomed guests as they anxiously waited the listening session of the milestone album for an artist who has changed lives, dealt with personal trials and tribulations publicly, yet still coming out on top looking better than ever. Guest appearances included his brother Jungle, DJ Khaled, Erick Sermon, and Swizz Beatz.

Joie Manda, the new president of Def Jam Music Group, introduced Nas who then kicked it off Queensbridge style. They started off with the intro track, which carried an uptempo beat yet very personal lyrics. Other tracks included Accidental Murderer, which the DJ played back several times and other songs whose track titles weren’t mentioned as they were played. He performed his latest track Daughters and beaming like the proud father he was, shouted out other fathers for Father’s Day as well as his daughter’s birthday. He turned it up again, bringing Swizz Beatz to the stage to introduce the first track they worked on called Summer on Smash.  They took it a step further and performed another Swizz track that’s sure to be a radio smash. Before Nas’ verse could drop, the crowd went crazy as they kept screaming back the hook for this untitled track. The DJ ran it back several times. Nas and Swizz even toyed around with the idea of dropping it today.

Nas brought his musical career back full circle on this album, solidifying his longevity and well deserved success despite the controversies over the years. While still remaining true to his lyricism, a diversity of tracks can be heard on this album, including those who still want the Illmatic Nas coupled with those who want to hear something new. Feeling his energy from across the room, he truly emulated his album title.

Rumored to be his last album with Def Jam, his 10th studio LP is a celebration for hip hop as well as himself. Life is Good hits stores July 17th.

Do you think this will be his best album yet? Let us know.

Check out photos from the night’s events below. Photos courtesy of Norman Cacho.