Nas cannot be stopped. Ever since the beginning of the new 2020s decade, the iconic New York rapper has been churning out albums at least once a year, as if he has a yearly quota to meet. And, after staying relatively quiet for the first half of 2023, he will finally release his seemingly mandatory Magic 2 LP this Friday (July 21).
Making the announcement Tuesday (July 18), accompanied by the project’s cover art reveal, Magic 2 will follow up Nas’ album Magic, which was released on Christmas Eve 2021 and included an appearance from fellow New Yorker A$AP Rocky. Just like every album in his King’s Disease trilogy, which saw releases in 2020, 2021, and 2022, Nas enlisted the help of legendary hip-hop instrumentalist Hit-Boy to executive produce Magic. And, although it has not been confirmed, it would be fair to assume Hit-Boy will work his Magic again on Friday’s album.
Videos by American Songwriter
Earlier this summer in late June, Nas gave an interview with Vanity Fair, where he revealed that he was back in the studio making music. He also shared why he has been eager to make and drop so many albums recently.
“I’m recording now, so we’ll see what happens,” he said. “I feel really good about that and I don’t wanna stop it once it’s flowing the way it’s flowing. It feels very free and I just wanna see what happens as I stick to it.”
Continuing on this tangent, he explained that he had not had a burst of creative energy like this in nearly two decades, and he wants to make the most of it.
“I’m in one of these creative growth spurts. It’s something that I’m really excited about and it surprises me—but I’m not too, too surprised because I was also waiting for the day that I felt like this again, and I knew it would come.”
While Magic and King’s Disease III were not able to do so, both of Nas’ first two albums this decade were nominated for Best Rap Album at the 2021 and 2022 Grammy Awards, with the King’s Disease’s first chapter taking home the hardware. As each album continues to see the 49-year-old maintain a high standard of excellence for his raps, it would not come as a surprise if Magic 2 saw the same fate as King’s Disease, especially in a year where mainstream hip-hop has had few reasons to celebrate.
Photo by Daniel Knighton/Getty Images