By Justin Michael Carter
Ten years ago this month, Nas established the gold standard for diss records with “Ether,” the ultimate punctuation to the greatest Hip-Hop battle of all time. In today’s era of Twitter beefs, rap stars like Drake seem more willing to diss Kevin Hart on wax than they are to respond to shots fired by Ludacris. At times, it can be easy to forget what a real Hip-Hop battle looks like. “Ether” was an effort so devastating in its execution that the name itself simultaneously became a verb immediately upon its release. No one ever claims to have “Bridge is Overed” somebody or spit “Jack the Ripper” at an adversary. Nor has any rapper boasted about being “Takeover” or “Long Kiss Goodnight” than their competition. This distinction belongs to “Ether” alone.
Boxing fans clamoring for a Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight need only look back at the Nas vs. Jay-Z bout to whet their appetite for the epic clash. In the Hip-Hop ring Nas employs Floyd Mayweather’s skill set. He is a lyrical technician, a deliberate and masterful composer of intricate rhymes densely packed into each verse. Jay-Z’s lyrics on the other hand display a hustler’s insight, flashy combinations of punchlines, and hard hitting freestyle flows like a rap version of Manny Pacquiao. This is one of the many reasons their battle was so tantalizing.
One of the many reasons “Ether” remains so iconic is the mythology that surrounds it. As epic as the Nas vs. Jay-Z battle remains, very little has been accurately reported about exactly what led to their historic clash and the “Ether” atomic bomb that ended it in Hiroshima fashion. The following is a comprehensive look at the “Ether” timeline and everything on wax that led to its inception.
Reasonable Doubt– June 1996 – “Dead Presidents”
This is the first instance we have of Jay-Z showing Nas love on wax, sampling Nas’ classic, “The World Is Yours.” There is also speculation that Nas was supposed to appear on Reasonable Doubt but never showed up to the “Bring it On” recording session. Nas was also invited to the video shoot for “Dead Presidents” to take part in the video’s legendary Monopoly game played with real money. Nas never showed but AZ, his partner in rhyme was there. Whether this was a Brooklyn thing or a next best thing thing, only Jay-Z can say for certain. Dame Dash has also stated on record that Rocafella was negotiating to sign The Firm, so this could have had something to do with that as well. Whatever the case, “Dead Presidents” established a pattern of Jay-Z throwing love in Nas’ direction that wasn’t reciprocated in any discernible way.
It Was Written – July 1996 – “The Message”
Although Nas didn’t bother to show any love toward Jay-Z on wax, he did have some choice words for the Notorious B.I.G.. By the time Nas readied It Was Written, Bad Boy re-established New York commercial Hip-Hop and Biggie was declared King of New York. Whether it was pressure from then-manager Steve Stoute or just his competitive nature, Nas felt compelled to take aim at Biggie’s coronation with these bars from “The Message”:
“Yo let me let y’all niggas know one thing/There’s one life, one love, so there can only be one King”
Nas has repeatedly said Biggie was one of only a handful of emcees he respected as a peer in the rap game. This is why he went so far as to address him on the opening track of his sophomore LP.
Biggie’s Death- March 1997
The death of the Notorious B.I.G. sent shockwaves through the Hip- Hop industry and had a profound affect on both Nas and Jay-Z. Jay-Z, ever the businessman, made it his mission to inherit Biggie’s throne as King of New York. Nas, on the other hand, was characteristically introspective. He was deeply affected by B.I.G.’s death in a way he would not publicly express until years later.
Life After Death – March 1997 – “Kick in the Door” Notorious B.I.G – Kick In The Door
Though Biggie was murdered just weeks before the release of Life After Death, the album was recorded months beforehand and addressed several of his rivals and detractors. B.I.G. responded to Nas’ “The Message” with one of his own. “Kick in the Door” numbers among the most underrated diss records ever, featuring B.I.G. targeting Jeru the Damaja, Boot Camp Clik, Wu-Tang, and DJ Premier (“Son, I’m surprised you run with them) amongst others. Biggie puts Nas on notice with the following bars:
“Your reign on the top was short like leprechauns/As I crush so called willies, thugs and rapper dons…Ain’t no other kings in this rap thing/They siblings, nothing but my chil’ren/One shot, they disappearin’/It’s ill when, MC’s used to be on cruddy shit/Took home, Ready to Die, listened, studied shit/Now they on some money shit, successful out the blue/They lightweight, fragilly/My 9 mili make the white shake/That’s why my money never funny/And you still recouping…Stupid”
Puff Daddy and the Family No Way Out – July 1997 -“Victory” Puff Daddy Feat Biggie Smalls – Victory
The Notorious B.I.G. continued his verbal assault on Nas with a few choice bars from “Victory” [probably posthumously plucked from Life After – ed] on Puffy’s No Way Out album, which was recorded around the same time as the Life After Death recording sessions. On “Victory” B.I.G. menacingly threatens to harm Nas’ daughter Destiny when he raps:
“The son of Satan/They say my killings too blatant/You hesitating/I’m in your momma’s crib waiting/Duct taping your fam/Destiny lays in my hands/Gat lays on my waist”
Biggie’s death effectively put an end to his subliminal war of words with Nas. However, it would be just a few months later that Jay-Z’s rhymes would begin to grab Nas’ attention.
Lovely analysis.
Good stuff. But no mention of The Message, We Will Survive, What You Think Of That, My Mind Right, Nastradamus and The Bridge 2001. I think The Bridge 2001 was the reason the Rocafella artists were freestyling over Queens instrumentals. Nas had dissed the whole Rocafella click subliminally on that record while bigging up Queens.