>> Stephen: HEY, EVERYBODY, WELCOME BACK!
MY NEXT GUEST IS A GRAMMY-AWARD WINNING RAPPER, BUSINESSMAN, AND
HIP-HOP LEGEND. PLEASE WELCOME BACK TO
"THE LATE SHOW," NAS! [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE]
♪ ♪
GOOD TO SEE YOU. >> Nas: IT'S GREAT TO SEE YOU.
>> Stephen: IT'S BEEN SINCE 2018 SINCE YOU WERE SITTING IN
THE CHAIR. IT WAS IT SOMETHING I SAID?
NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN. I WANT TO ASK YOU AS A NATIVE
NEW YORKER, THIS FRIDAY YOUR PLANNING A ONE NIGHT PERFORMANCE
AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN IN HONOR OF YOUR NEW ALBUM RIGHT
HERE, "KING'S DISEASE III." AS A NATIVE NEW YORKER, IS THIS
YOUR FIRST TIME PLAYING AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN?
>> Nas: YES. >> Stephen: HOW DOES IF YOU
ARE THAT VENUE IN YOUR HOMETOWN? >> Nas: IT SORT OF SURREAL,
IT'S LIKE A DREAM. I NEVER THOUGHT I WOULD BE
THERE. I THOUGHT ABOUT IT WHEN I GOT
INTO MUSIC AND I THOUGHT LIKE I'VE GOT TO PLAY THAT PLACE WHEN
I MAKE IT. AND ALL THE YEARS ESCAPED ME
BECAUSE I GOT BUSY DOING SO MANY OTHER THINGS AND THEN I STARTED
RELEASING MUSIC AGAIN. AND I SAID NOW IS MY TIME.
>> Stephen: THE ALBUM IS GETTING GREAT REVIEWS.
BUT CAN YOU EXPLAIN TO ME WHAT THE TITLE "KING'S DISEASE III"
BECAUSE WHAT IS KING'S DISEASE? >> Nas: OVERINDULGENCE.
>> Stephen: THE KING GETS WHAT HE WANTS?
>> Nas: TO MUCH OF THAT IS NOT GOOD.
>> Stephen: HAVE YOU EVER HAD THE KING'S DISEASE?
>> Nas: SOME ELEMENTS OF IT HERE AND THERE YOU KNOW.
IT'S A WAKE-UP CALL. IF YOU WAKE UP BEFORE IT'S TOO
LATE YOU KNOW. I READ A LOT ABOUT A LOT OF
ARTISTS THAT CAME UP IN YOUR TIME.
[LAUGHTER] I'M KIDDING, I'M KIDDING, I'M
KIDDING. [LAUGHS]
IN OUR TIME, YOU KNOW, BEFORE OUR TIME.
AND SOME OF THEM WERE WILD PEOPLE.
I LEARNED A LOT FROM THEM. IT KIND OF GAVE ME SOME OF THE
GUIDELINES IN THIS BUSINESS. >> Stephen: WHAT DO YOU DO,
HOW YOU CURE THE KING'S DISEASE? >> Nas: YOU KNOW, WE KILL THAT
YOU AND WE MAKE IT ABOUT THE MUSIC, MAKE IT ABOUT THE ART AND
LIVE YOUR LIFE. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE]
>> Stephen: WELL -- SPEAKING OF OUR GENERATION,
HIP-HOP TURNS 50 THIS YEAR. IF I HAD CHUCK TO TALK ABOUT
THAT RECENTLY. SOMEONE WHO'S BEEN IN THE
BUSINESS FOR 30 YEARS, HERE YOU ARE AS A YOUNG MAN RIGHT THERE,
1996. DID YOU EVER IMAGINE, I MEAN,
HIP-HOP AT THAT POINT WAS CERTAINLY COMING INTO ITS OWN,
BUT DO YOU IMAGINE IT WOULD BE THE ENORMOUS GLOBAL SPENDING
SUCCESS THAT IT IS? >> Nas: I DID.
I DID. I SAW THE POTENTIAL I GUESS WHEN
IT WAS IN THE EARLY STAGES OF THE EARLY '80s, I WOULD ASK MY
DAD AND MY MOM WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THIS.
[LAUGHTER] OH, MAN.
BUT I WOULD ASK THEM LIKE DO YOU LIKE THIS, YOU GET IT?
SOMETIME SOME SONG YES, SOME SONGS, NO.
BUT WHEN THEY GET IT, I SAID THERE IS HOPE.
WHEN IT MADE IT TO THE SILVER SCREEN, THERE WERE MOVIES AND I
SAID IF YOU CAN MAKE IT TO THE SILVER SCREEN, THERE IS GOING TO
BE AROUND HERE >> Stephen: HOW ARE YOU GOING TO CELEBRATE?
THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIP-HOP. >> Nas: WE ARE DOING A COUPLE
OF THINGS. PARTNERING WITH THE MUSEUM AND A
WHOLE BUNCH OF PHOTOGRAPHERS, THEY DOCUMENTED THE WHOLE THINGS
SINCE THE EARLY '70s AND ON DOWN.
SOME FUTURE CONCERTS COMING UP IN PARTIES, PEOPLE, FRIENDS,
GATHERINGS, DJs, IT'S A LOT OF THINGS WE ARE ROLLING OUT THIS
YEAR. >> Stephen: YOU PUT OUT SO
MUCH OF YOUR OWN MATERIAL. YOU WORK WITH ALL KIND OF
DIFFERENT FOLKS. IS THERE ANYBODY YOU HAVEN'T HAD
A CHANCE TO COLLABORATE WITH THAT YOU'D STILL LIKE TO DO TH
THAT? >> Nas: AL GREEN TO BILLY JOEL
TO -- >> Stephen: I'D LOVE TO SEE
YOU DO SOMETHING WITH BILLY JOEL.
>> Nas: TO THE BOSS, BRUCE. >> Stephen: THOSE GUYS ARE AT
THE GARDEN AND ALL THE TIME. IF YOU SHOULD HANG AROUND
BACKSTAGE UNTIL THEY SHOW UP BECAUSE YOU WALK OUT OF THE
NEW YORK STATE OF MIND. >> Nas: I TRIED THAT WITH
BILLY JOEL'S -- >> Stephen: HE'S GOT GREAT
SECURITY. >> Nas: YEAH, I WENT TO THE
SHOW AND IT'S INCREDIBLE. HE'S THE KING.
>> Stephen: WHO INSPIRES YOU? YOU ARE ABOUT TO TURN 50
YOURSELF. A LITTLE DIFFERENT GENERATION I
WOULDN'T SAY, BUT A LITTLE OLDER THAN YOU ARE AND I PROMISE I
WON'T KEEP TALKING ABOUT THIS. WHO INSPIRES YOU AND IS THERE
ANY ARTISTS WHO KEEP YOU ON YOUR TOES?
>> Nas: I'M REALLY TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT MY NEXT MOVE IS
AND AT THIS POINT -- I FEEL LIKE A LOT OF HIP-HOP ARTISTS MY AGE
AREN'T PUTTING A LOT OF MATERIAL OUT SO I CANNOT LOOK TO THEM AS
A REFERENCE. THEY KIND OF SLOWED DOWN FOR
WHATEVER REASONS I UNDERSTAND, IT'S A TOUGH THING.
BUT I GOT BIT BY THE BUG, MAN, I COLLABORATED WITH THIS CAT WHO
IS LIKE THE BEST AND HE REDUCED ALL OF THOSE ALBUMS.
WE KIND OF INSPIRED OURSELVES. IT'S REALLY INTERESTING.
>> Stephen: WHAT DO YOU SEE IN HIM THAT YOU THINK IS LACKING IN
YOURSELF? >> Nas: YOUTH.
[LAUGHTER] HE'S YOUNGER THAN ME.
>> Stephen: H HOOKING UP YOUR JUMPER CABLES TO HIM.
>> Nas: HE'S GETTING SOME KIND OF WISDOM FOR ME AND WE ARE A
PERFECT MATCH. >> Stephen: IN HONOR OF THE
FACT THAT YOU ARE NOW ALMOST AS OLD AS HIP-HOP IS THIS YEAR, IS
THERE A LYRICA, A PARTICULAR BIT OF HIP-HOP FROM THE PAST THAT IS
PARTICULARLY MEANINGFUL TO YOU? >> Nas: I THINK THERE IS A
SONG ABOUT MY NEIGHBOR THAT CAME OUT IN 1985.
IT WAS THE ANTHEM, A HIP-HOP AND FOAM.
IT SAID -- HE SAID IN THE LAST VERSE I'M PARAPHRASING IT LIKE
DAY DREAMS, AND SOLD. YOU HAVE TO TRY TO RECEIVE YOUR
GOAL. IF, HOWEVER, YOU DO IT, HOWEVER
YOU MAY, NEVER LISTEN TO WHAT NOBODY SAY.
BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO KNOW THE DEAL, GO BY WHAT YOUR HEART
FEELS, BECAUSE IF YOU DON'T, YOU WILL BE MISLED BY STUPID LITTLE
THINGS INSIDE YOUR HEAD. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE]
>> Stephen: WOW. >> Nas: YEAH.
YEAH! YEAH.
>> Stephen: HAVE YOU FOUND THAT TO BE TRUE?
>> Nas: SO TRUE. THAT VERSE, WHEN I HEARD IT, IT
WAS LIKE GOSPEL. THIS IS WHAT I HAVE TO BE AWARE
OF. >> Stephen: WELL, NAS, GREAT
TO SEE YOU. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE]
CATCH NAS AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN THIS
FRIDAY FOR HIS ONE NIGHT ONLY PERFORMANCE OF THE
"KING'S DISEASE" TRILOGY AND STREAM "KING'S DISEASE III"
EVERYWHERE NOW! NAS!
WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK. [CHEERS AND APPLAUSE]