Earlier today (August 6), Nas blessed the world with his fourteenth — yes, fourteenth — studio LP King’s Disease II, his and Hit-Boy’s sequel to last year’s King’s Disease. This go ‘round, fans can enjoy 15 tracks with additional features from Eminem, EPMD, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, YG, Lauryn Hill, Charlie Wilson, and Blxst.
In addition to the new album, the Queensbridge icon has also liberated a visual from said project for “Rare,” which sees Nas at his most boastful — which, at this point in his career, he has every right to be — with rhymes breaking down what sets himself apart from any other emcee, young and old:
“Yo, I’m in rare form, niggas speak down on my name like I wasn’t there for ‘em, talk about back in the days, this isn’t back in the days, they want me back in my ways, chipped tooth and the fade, uh, musically I’m on Mars, walkin’ all over the beat, puttin’ my feet on the stars, I rock it like Lenny, thinkin’ like Jimi the first time he seen a guitar, standing in front of where they shot Ahmaud, and said we gotta know who we are…”
Directed by Savannah Setten, the accompanying clip for “Rare” begins with black-and-white shots of Nas in a room with a chess piece, before a women pours a couple of glasses of Hennessy — a pretty smooth promotional plug given Nas’ partnership with the spirits brand. Affectionate moments then morph into a dreamlike state, before things really pick up with a large group of well-dressed men setting up an in-color game of chess for Nas and his opponent. Simply put, this one is definitely worth more than a few replays.
Press play on Nas’ video for “Rare” — you can also enjoy King’s Disease II in full here.