Thursday Throwbacks: Nas - "It Ain't Hard To Tell"

Damn.  This is just pure Hip Hop right here.  The Illmatic album is just a freakin' classic. "It Ain't Hard To Tell" is one of my favorite Rap songs of all time and it's the song that turned me on to Nas' music.  

As soon as I heard those horns and noticed the sample of Michael Jackson's "Human Nature" I was hooked.  It took me a little longer to pay attention to Nas' lyrics but once I caught up to his style and flow, I realized how nasty NaS really was.  They just don't make them like this anymore. 

In 1991, Nas recorded a demo tape featuring the original version of "It Ain't Hard to Tell" called "Nas Will Prevail". This version is about 90 seconds longer and has slightly different verses and lyrics.  The beat is similar but the horns are different and a little more annoying and simplistic when compared to the final version.  It's still cool to hear how he progressed with the song over time.  Dopeness!


Here's a look back at MJ's "Human Nature" so you can compare and contrast.  Another classic!


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