By Adrian Woods, Staff Writer

[Mass Appeal Records, 2023]

Rating: 7/10

Key tracks: “Fever”, “Never Die”, “Based On True Events Pt.2”

Ever since his 2018 album NASIR, the hip-hop community has both condemned and praised Nas for making (arguably) one of hip-hop’s best comebacks to date. From the King’s Disease and Magic trilogy, Nas has been on a roll making some of his best music to date, and while Magic 3 is not the strongest in his recent run of albums, it’s still a solid addition to his discography and a good addition to this new trilogy. 

The record kicks off with one of the best songs on the album, “Fever”, a song that is both one of Nas’s best recent album openers and a track that really feels like a throwback to a song that could’ve been on an early Nas record. This is in large part due to the production by Hit-Boy, who gives a real old school feeling to it. There is even a nod to one of Nas’s songs off Illmatic, “Represent”. The production on the album from Hit-Boy is really sharp and his work on the past Nas projects has been nothing but great, even if a few beats fall short or feel repetitive. Songs like “Fever”, “TSK”, and “Jodeci Member”, are a few of the best produced songs on the album. 

The Magic trilogy has had features from artists like 21 Savage, ASAP Rocky, and 50 Cent, but this album’s only feature comes from Lil Wayne on “Never Die” where he delivers a great verse on the track. Nas’s pen game on this album, with this run he’s been on, is still extremely creative. A central topic in these songs is talking about Nas’ past, and you really get to see how he shaped himself to become the artist he is. Returning to “Fever”, it’s a song where you can tell Nas is very grateful for his career and all that made it successful, making us feel his journey and age with this song. “Based on True Events” and its Pt. 2, details his past as well, discussing past relationships and his street life and how that affected him, as well as his growing away from them.

It might be odd to say, but even at just 45 minutes, this album feels like it is too long. The two previous entries in the Magic trilogy were both about 30 minutes long, which was the perfect length for those albums. This one could have trimmed a few songs to keep it from dragging a bit. As great as Nas’s lyrical work is on this, a lot of Nas critics believe that his lyrics are too corny. While a lot of the time that is to Nas’s advantage, there are a few lyrics on here that come off as dated or just silly—maybe not necessarily in a bad way, but in a way where you’re laughing at it and not with it.

Magic 3 is a fun ending to the Magic trilogy. With his signature style and flow with beats that feel like they’re straight from the ‘90s, it’s almost a guarantee that hip-hop heads and Nas’ hardcore fanbase will dig this record.

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