In celebration of the 20th anniversary of Nas’ hip hop masterpiece Illmatic, the New York native has announced a new documentary focused on the album’s creation, and a screening tour to showcase its culmination.
Nas, who is considered to be one of hip hop’s all-time greatest figures, released the now infamous Illmatic in April of 1994, on Columbia Records. Produced by Nas, Pete Rock, Q-Tip and DJ Premier, the 10 track LP debuted at number 12 on the US Billboard Top 200 chart and later became known as one of the quintessential hip hop albums of the 90s.
(In May 2011, Detroit hip hop legend and former Slum Village member, Elzhi, and Detroit-based funk group Will Sessions recreated the album, to the praise of DJ Premier. Listen to it here.)
As of April 2014, Illmatic has sold more than 1,685,000 copies in the US alone. It features countless hip hop anthems, including: “One Love,” “New York State of Mind,” “Life’s a Bitch,” “The World is Yours,” “Halftime” and others.
The Queensbridge rap superstar has announced the creation of a new documentary focused on the making of the LP, titled “Nas: Time is Illmatic.” Rather than release the film immediately for home viewing, Nas, and director One9, have decided to take the show on tour (sponsored by Hennessy).
Nas has opted to screen “Nas: Time is Illmatic” at 11 theaters across the US, in addition to promising to perform Illmatic in its entirety after each screening. The one-time-only tour will stretch from New York to California in October, and include The Fillmore in Detroit, on 10/9. (Tickets range from $35-$75.)
See the full list of tour dates below:
10.02.14 – Rochester, NY – Main Street Armony *
10.03.14 – Albany, NY – Palace Theatre
10.04.14 – Washington D.C. – Lincoln Theatre (Matinee)
10.05.14 – Glenside, PA – Keswick Theatre
10.08.14 – Toronto, ON – Queen Elizabeth Theatre
10.09.14 – Detroit, MI – The Fillmore Detroit
10.10.14 – Hammond, IN – Horseshoe
10.11.14 – Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theatre *
10.12.14 – Denver, CO – Paramount Theatre
10.15.14 – Seattle, WA – Moore Theatre
10.16.14 – Vancouver, BC – Vogue Theatre
10.17.14 – Las Vegas, NV – The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas *
10.18.14 – Los Angeles, CA – Orpheum Theatre
10.19.14 – Oakland, CA – Fox Theater
(* No Documentary Screening)
Watch the trailer for “Nas: Time is Illmatic” below: