Nastradamus

Nastradamus
Studio album by
ReleasedNovember 23, 1999
Recorded1999
Genre
Length62:43
Label
Producer
Nas chronology
I Am...
(1999)
Nastradamus
(1999)
Stillmatic
(2001)
Singles from Nastradamus
  1. "Nastradamus"
    Released: October 26, 1999
  2. "You Owe Me"
    Released: 1999
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Chicago Tribunemixed[2]
Robert Christgau(neither)[3]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[4]
Los Angeles Times[5]
PopMattersmixed[6]
Rolling Stone[7]
USA Today[8]
The Washington Postfavorable[9]
Yahoo! Musicmixed[10]

Nastradamus is the fourth studio album by American rapper Nas, released on November 23, 1999, by Ill Will and Columbia Records. It was originally intended to be composed entirely of material from sessions for I Am... and released October 26,[11] but in response to bootlegging of that material, release was postponed one month for Nas to record new material for Nastradamus.[11]

The album debuted at number 7 on the US Billboard 200, selling over 232,000 copies in its first week. It received generally mixed reviews from critics, and has been regarded by some as Nas's weakest effort.[12] However, it achieved considerable commercial success and spawned two charting singles.[11] On December 22, 1999, the album was certified Platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[13]

In retrospect, Nas said: "On that album, there’s a couple of songs that have a certain sound to it that doesn’t sound like anything else I’ve done. And it was a gray area in my life and that album represents that gray area. It was personal stuff that I’d rather not elaborate on. But I have nothing against that album."[14]

  1. ^ Farley, Keith. Review: Nastradamus. AllMusic. Retrieved on 2009-11-21.
  2. ^ Baker, Soren. "Review: Nastradamus". Chicago Tribune: 14. November 28, 1999. (Transcription of original review at talk page)
  3. ^ Christgau, Robert. "Consumer Guide: Nastradamus". The Village Voice: January 2000.
  4. ^ Diehl, Matt. Review: Nastradamus Archived 2013-07-30 at the Wayback Machine. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2009-11-21.
  5. ^ Baker, Soren. Review: Nastradamus[permanent dead link]. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2009-11-21. Note: Original rating at archived page[permanent dead link].
  6. ^ Fuchs, Cynthia. Review: Nastradamus. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2009-11-21.
  7. ^ Powell, Kevin (2000-01-20). "Nastradamus". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2012-02-28.
  8. ^ Jones, Steve. "Review: Nastradamus". USA Today: 08.D. November 23, 1999. (Transcription of original review at talk page)
  9. ^ Harrington, Richard. "Review: Nastradamus". The Washington Post: G.14. December 15, 1999. Archived from the original on 2009-11-21.
  10. ^ Carter, James. Review: Nastradamus Archived 2011-07-17 at the Wayback Machine. Yahoo! Music. Retrieved on 2009-11-21.
  11. ^ a b c Birchmeier, Jason. Biography: Nas. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2009-11-21.
  12. ^ Hoard (2004), p. 568.
  13. ^ Gold & Platinum: Searchable Database Archived 2007-06-26 at the Wayback Machine. Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Retrieved on 2008-08-09.
  14. ^ Kimble, Julian (November 21, 2014). "Come Get Me: Why Nas' 'Nastradamus' Album Is Better Than You Think". Vibe.