6 Big Takeaways From Nas’ ‘Time Is Illmatic’ Documentary Premiere

Dan RysPublished: April 17, 2014

The premiere of Nas' brand new Time Is Illmatic documentary celebrating the 20th anniversary of Mr. Jones' classic debut LP Illmatic was last night at Manhattan's Beacon Theater, and the turnout proved to be star-studded. With legends such as Eric B., Marley Marl, Kool Herc, Large Professor and Pete Rock in the house, among a whole host of others, filmmakers Erik Parker and One9—who had been at work on the documentary for a decade—presented their feature-length entry into the canon of Nas' career. The film itself was exhaustive, diving not necessarily into the making of the album from a musical standpoint, but more from a cultural, societal and quasi-political one, following Nas and his brother Jungle through the Queensbridge projects that they called home and recreating the environment that produced such a masterpiece nearly 20 years ago.

Nas, of course, followed up on the premiere with a performance of Illmatic in its entirety, accompanied by DJ Green Lantern and opening with a little assist from Alicia Keys playing "NY State Of Mind" on the piano. XXL was there to see it all happen, and these are the six biggest takeaways from last night's premiere. Represent. —Dan Rys

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Previously: Twitter Reacts To Nas’ Time Is Illmatic Documentary Premiere
Nas’ Time Is Illmatic Documentary Has Been In The Works For 10 Years
MC Serch Always Knew Nas’ Illmatic Was The Greatest Album Of All Time
Illmatic A&R Faith Newman On Nas’ Wild Early Days
Nas Says New York City Wrote Illmatic
Nas’ 20 Best Lines On Illmatic
The Making Of Nas’ Illmatic — XXL Issue 112