Hip Hop Wiki

Yo, thanks for checking out the Hip Hop Wiki! Please help us out by liking our Facebook page at Hip Hop Wiki

READ MORE

Hip Hop Wiki
I Am...

Studio album by Nas

Released

April 6, 1999

Recorded

September 1997 - July 1998

Studio

D&D Studios
(New York City, New York)
The Hit Factory
(New York City, New York)
Sony Music Studios
(New York City, New York)
Music Palace
(Long Island, New York)

Genre

East Coast hip hop, Mafioso rap, Hardcore hip hop

Length

64:54

Label

Columbia Records

Producer

Carlos Broady, D. Moet, DJ Premier, Dame Grease, Jamel Edgerten, L.E.S., Nashiem Myrick, Nas (exec.), Steve "The Commissioner" Stoute (exec.), Trackmasters, Pretty Boy, Timbaland, Alvin West

Nas chronology

Previous

It Was Written (1996)

Next

Nastradamus (1999)

I Am... is the third studio album by American rapper Nas. It was released in April 6, 1999 via Columbia Records. It was initially scheduled for February 1999 release. Recording sessions took place at The Hit Factory, D&D Studios, Sony Music Studios and The Music Palace in New York City from September 1997 to July 1998. Production was handled by DJ Premier, Trackmasters, L.E.S., Nashiem Myrick, Dame Grease, Carlos Broady, Alvin West, Pretty Boy, D. Moetm Jamal Edgerten and Timbaland. It includes guest appearances by DMX, Scarface, Aaliyah and Puff Daddy. The album was originally a double album titled I Am... The Autobiography, but most of the original sessions were bootlegged and Nas was forced to discard many songs, reducing it to a single disc release. I Am... became one of the first major label releases to be widely leaked using MP3 technology. Some of the leaked songs were later released on the compilation album The Lost Tapes in 2002.

The two singles from I Am... were "Hate Me Now" and "Nas Is Like". The former features Puff Daddy and became a Billboard Hot 100 hit, although its Hype Williams-directed music video generated controversy. The latter is one of two songs from the album produced by DJ Premier, and was popular amongst underground circles and continued a long list of popular Nas and DJ Premier collaborations. The song "We Will Survive", a tribute to Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G., features a diss aimed at Jay-Z, who claimed to be "New York's king". The record has been cited as potentially encouraging the Jay-Z-Nas feud.

I Am... debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 and on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart in the United States, with selling over 470,000 copies in its first week. I Am... was later certified double platinum in the United States, making it Nas' second best-selling release behind It Was Written. Upon its release, the album received generally positive reviews from music critics.


Track listing[]

No. Title Performer(s) Writer(s) Producer(s) Time
1. "Album Intro" - - - 2:51
2. "N.Y. State of Mind Part II" Nas Jones, Martin DJ Premier 3:36
3. "Hate Me Now" Nas, Puff Daddy Jones, Marchand Pretty Boy, D. Moet, Poke and Tone 4:44
4. "Small World" Nas Broady, Jones, Myrick Nashiem Myrick, Carlos Broady 4:45
5. "Favor for a Favor" Nas, Scarface Jones, Jordan, Lewis L.E.S. 4:07
6. "We Will Survive" Nas Barnes, Edgerten, Jones, Olivier Poke and Tone, Jamel Edgerten 5:00
7. "Ghetto Prisoners" Nas Blackmon, Jones Grease 4:01
8. "You Won't See Me Tonight" Nas, Aaliyah Elliott, Jones, Mosley Timbaland 4:23
9. "I Want to Talk to You" Nas Jones, Lewis, West L.E.S., Alvin West 4:36
10. "Dr. Knockboot" Nas Barnes, Jones, Olivier Poke and Tone 2:25
11. "Life Is What You Make It" Nas, DMX Jones, Lewis, Simmons L.E.S. 4:05
12. "Big Things" Nas Jones, Masser, Masser, West Alvin West 3:40
13. "Nas Is Like" Nas Bell, Bell, Bettis, Brown, Handy, Horne, Jones, Martin, Mickens, Mitchell, Porcaro, Redd, Redd, Smith, Thomas DJ Premier 3:57
14. "K-I-SS-I-N-G" Nas Jones, Kelly, Lewis, West L.E.S., Alvin West 4:16
15. "Money Is My Bitch" Nas Barnes, Jones, Olivier Alvin West, Poke and Tone 4:03
16. "Undying Love" Nas Jones, Lewis L.E.S. 4:23

Samples[]

Album Intro (I Am...)

  • "Amityville Horror Main Title" by Lalo Schifrin

N.Y. State of Mind, Part II

  • "Coup De Coeur (Harmony)" by Richard Clayderman
  • "Flight Time" by Donald Byrd
  • "Mohagany" by Eric B. & Rakim

Hate Me Now

  • "O Fortuna" by Carl Orff

Small World

  • "Love to Last Forever" by Zulema

We Will Survive

  • "This Is It" by Kenny Loggins

You Won't See Me Tonight

  • "Underwater Grave" by Jerry Goldsmith

Dr. Knockboot

  • "Say What" by Idris Muhammad

Life Is What You Make It

  • "Vittroni's Theme - King Is Dead" by Roy Ayers

Big Things

  • "Theme from Mohagany (Do You Know Where You're Going To)" by Diana Ross

Nas Is Like

  • "What Child Is This?" by John V. Rydgren and Bob R. Way
  • "Tropical Birds" by Jac Holzman
  • "It Ain't Hard to Tell" by Nas
  • "Nobody Beats the Biz" by Biz Markie feat. TJ Swann

K-I-SS-I-N-G

  • "When A Woman's Fed Up" by R. Kelly

Undying Love

  • "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" (1977) by Kenny Rankin