Born to Use Mics: Reading Nas's Illmatic

by Michael Eric Dyson, Sohail Daulatzai

At the age of nineteen, Nasir “Nas” Jones began recording tracks for his debut album—and changed the music world forever. Released in 1994, Illmatic was hailed as an instant masterpiece and has proven one of the most influential albums in hip-hop history. With its close attention to beats and lyricism, and riveting first-person explorations of the isolation and desolation of urban poverty, Illmatic was pivotal in the evolution of the genre.In Born to Use Mics, Michael Eric Dyson and Sohail Daulatzai have brought together renowned writers and critics including Mark Anthony Neal, Marc Lamont Hill, Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., and many others to confront Illmatic song by song, with each scholar assessing an individual track from the album. The result is a brilliant engagement with and commentary upon one of the most incisive sets of songs ever laid down on wax.

Genres: Music, Hip Hop, Nonfiction, Cultural, Cultural Studies

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 9, 2008

About the author

Michael Eric Dyson is an American academic, author, and radio host. He is a professor of sociology at Georgetown University.

Reviews

[Manny Furious · Rating 2 out of 5]

Despite the two stars I gave this book, I feel this is a must read for anyone who even remotely enjoys the Illmatic album. Personally, I am a huge Nas fan and I consider Illmatic to be one of the top 5 or 10 artistic achievements of the past 25 years, in any medium... but this book was very disappointing to me for several reasons. The biggest one is that the writers of the essays in the book tend to think that the majority of the album's value lies in what it says, tangentially, about sociology and politics. And while they are often right in their assessments, I find myself growing increasingly annoyed that hip hop as a whole is considered most valuable when it is primarily assessed as a form of social criticism. It frustrates me that critics can't just interpret the best of hip hop as great art and explain what makes it great art in and of itself, regardless of its politics.

The books is divided for about the first two-thirds by essays about inspired by each individual song on the album. Another of my main problems is that most of the essays hardly mention the song that they're supposed to be about. The essay associated with "One Time for Your Mind" for example, spent much more time trying to deconstruct the music video for "I Can", a song released almost 10 years after Illmatic. Regardless, I found that essay to be the weakest amongst all that are presented. It's promotes a feminist argument, and while I don't argue that Hip Hop needs a more "feminine" (for lack of a better word) touch, I think the author glosses over various contradictory events that would weaken her argument. The biggest one for me is the author's assertion that Nas, as well as other hip hop "traditionalists" (again, for lack of a better word)dislike the progression of modern hip hop because they would like to go back to the days when hip hop was a predominately male enterprise. While the author does have a leg to stand on, especially with regards to several of Nas's statements, she also fails to mention that Nas, on the song "Represent", specifically mentions the battle between Shante and The Real Roxanne--a battle between two females that took place during the exact time period that the author uses to illustrate her point of a female absence. Therefore, this inclusion would seem to suggest to me that Nas's comments were merely him calling it as it was (he had something about most women not liking the type of hip hop he enjoyed growing up), and not saying that hip hop necessarily has to appeal to males only. I, myself, have met only a handful of females in my life who like the same hip hop music I do, and I don't like most of the hip hop my female acquaintances enjoy. I personally don't think this is so because I wish to exclude women. Instead, I think it's just because there's something in me, whether nature or nurture, that attracts me to music that makes me want to punch someone in the face... and this sort of music, for whatever reason, just doesn't seem to attract many females.

The best essays were the ones that actually focused on the songs they were supposed to be inspired by. The essays on "Life's a Bitch" and "Represent" and "It Ain't Hard to Tell" come immediately to mind. The essay on "New York State of Mind" was decent, but ultimately disappointing because I see the song as an example of some of the most visual and visceral and vibrant poetry written. And while the author does touch on this slightly, he seems more preoccupied with exploring its sociological and political implications, instead of its art.

The focus on the politics and sociological implications is not necessarily a bad thing ), but I think the authors should've done a better job, on the whole, of discussing the importance of such things being done in an artistic manner.

Ultimately, it was worth the read and several of the articles are superb. The best part of the book for me was the last third which features various interviews, vignettes and elegies associated with the album.

[Sidik Fofana · Rating 4 out of 5]

six word review: Will make you rewind that album.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Michael Eric Dyson's Born to Use Mics: Reading Nas's Illmatic is a book that compiles a variety of essay's and writeups that analyzes Nas's Illmatic within the lenses of sociological, political and ethnographic approaches.

Diving deep into one of hip-hop's greatest albums, each author conveys their view on how each song to provide engagement and commentary within the context of issues that Nas's lyricism touches upon. Issues like the prison industrial complex, poverty and stratification as well as gender issues are some of these topics that are discussed upon within this book.

Although each essay did provide great viewpoints and analysis on the album, I found myself more engaged with the "remix" section of the book where instead of a more "literary critique" on Illmatic, we get to read and reflect upon the significance Illmatic played within hip-hop and its culture. Some contemporaries such as Bobbito Garcia, and "Shortie" aka Miss Info are just a few that contribute to the remix section of the book and provides insight to how Illmatic changed hip-hop and how Nas was able to bring Queensbridge to the forefront.

In summary, this book should be read by any hip hop heads and music lovers that are looking to deepen their knowledge with Nas's Illmatic and does provide interesting viewpoints and analysis into why Illmatic is heralded as one of hip-hop's greatest albums.

[Sade' Q. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nas is my all time favorite hip hop artist and a legend in the genre of hip hop. This book, which was written based on Nas' first album Illmatic( one of my favorite hip hop albums) breaks down each track on the album in a way in which its like your seeing through the eyes of Nasir "nas"'Bin Olu Dara Jones/ his lyrics are a glimpse into his world growing up in Queens bridge projects New York. I can relate to him, his rhymes, and definitely his struggles. I suggest this book to any die hard "true"' fans of hip hop. Michael Eric Dyson, who happens to be another favorite of mine, does a good job of expaining each track while relating them to his life and most importantly to the life of others alike. But in some parts of the book more focus was being put on specific instances and going off topic instead of talking about the song in question. One part I didn't like was when an essay/chapter was focused more on a song called "'i can" which wasnt even on Illmatic but was explained and given critisim for the negatives hip hop artists have on females rather talking about the meaning of the song which is way more powerful. I think too much was spent on 2 seconds of a visual in a video when the song was much more than that. The negative treatment of females in hip hop is not great but this book was not on that and the song "I can"' wasnt even on the album, but none the less i would reccommend the book!

[Byron · Rating 2 out of 5]

Parts of this I really liked, and parts of it I found almost impossible to read. I would have just skipped them, if I weren't so OCD. In particular, if you do decide to pick this up, don't bother with the chapter on "One Time for Your Mind." Fast forward through it just like you did the actual song back in the '90s, if you're that old. Of the other nine chapters that correspond to the other nine songs on the album, the only one I really, really liked was the one on "Halftime," oddly enough. And there were a few other ones that I kinda liked. This book is at its best when it uses the songs as a jumping off point to discuss something that's barely tangentially related (which is Michael Eric "Cornholio" Dyson's usual schtick in his umpteen books), and it's at its worst when it actually tries to analyze certain lyrics, to show you how "deep" they are. In some cases, it seems like they completely misread the lyrics, and in other cases it seems like they reach a bit too far in trying to ascribe some sort of meaning to them.

[Le Dunc · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the most uneven books I've read, mostly because each chapter was written by a different person. Some authors had a lot of great insight to offer about Nas, and Illmatic, others found ways to relate it/him to their lives, or a cause that was important to them; sometimes, however they did this at the expense of saying almost anything at all about the music itself. So, the writing styles, the content, the quality of writing, shifts from chapter to chapter so that despite being a book about one subject it feels disjointed and lacking in unity. I enjoyed it a lot because I'm already very interested in the subject matter, but ultimately I can't say that I would recommend it to anyone who wasn't.

[Roger Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful collection of essays by talented writers and scholars breaking down one of the best hip hop albums ever made.

[Jahan Hayes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Michael Eric Dyson and Sohail Doulatzai clearly have much love and appreciation for Nas' Illmatic, and it shows in their clever writing and thoughtful analyses. Each of these authors brings an incredible amount of enthusiasm and background knowledge of Nas' ~15 year career in hip hop, and they trade paragraphs with a style that would make the God's Son proud.

Unfortunately, I felt many of the contemporary writers they brought on board to aid in the analysis of various tracks on Illmatic were not on the same page about the objective of this collection. Many of these cameo chapters were incredibly dry and deviated so wildly from the core subject (Nas and Illmatic), they feel like they almost could've been ripped from completely different books.

As a huge fan of Nas' work, I really wanted to love this book. However, it's hard to recommend to even the most die hard fans in that they likely won't learn much they didn't already know, and they'll have to wade through a ton of off-topic filler content to get what few Nas related gems this collection has to offer.

[Kojo Baffoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nas' Illmatic is absolutely deserving of this type of honest and detailed exploration but, unlike the album itself, there are moments when the essays fall a little short. The writing in some of the essays is stilted and get caught up in the desire to come across as 'intellectual and academic.'

But, even with that, each deserves to be heard, and read, and engaged with. Each has its place just as each song on Illmatic crafts a story that resonates, even for those of us who aren't from New York, or Queensbridge, specifically.

[Kieron Byatt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first bought this book more than 10 years ago, when I was 19/20. I ended up putting it down, at the time, because I was disappointed with its structure. I was expecting essays about the album, but it's essentially essays responding to the album. I remember finding it verbose and pretentious.

After 50-odd pages in, past where I fell off, I enjoyed it more. But there's still that slight frustration with the tangents the authors go on rather than discussing the album.

Upon finishing, some of the chapters/essays were pretentious, but it was worth it for the quality chapters. And I loved the latter half of the book - a collection of interviews, reviews, and articles from when Illmatic was released.

[Sam Levatich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Variable essay quality and ultimately a bit overbearing of a requirement to have an essay per song (most come in waaay too long), but there's some good words here for a great album. The final section of the book, relaxing those constraints, really shines and is a great balance of shorter takes, different formats, and rich context (see: 1994 primary source interview transcripts!!)

[Rafael Suleiman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good examination of the significance of Nas in Hip Hop culture.

[Ityohuma]

Any thing related to nas is already legendary.

[Brian Hickey · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a hip hop fan that was fortunate enough to grow up during the 'golden age' of the genre, this book truly was a delightful, nostalgic and long awaited read. It is a swan song, an homage to the greatest hip hop album ever made and uses it as blueprint to explain a number of important issues. It breaks down illmatic's message, track by track, and explains its sociological relevance via Dyson's eloquent delivery (though his writing only appears in an essay on 'One Love', making this a collection of essays written by a collection of writers). Though I fully appreciated how deep many of the writers went, I felt that this book's weakest aspect was that it flexed its academic prowess with some overkill at times, losing the reader that merely wanted reaffirmation as to why illmatic was so dope. At the end of the day however, the academia is awe-inspiring and stands out as a massive positive, providing the reader with an arsenal of propositions to reflect upon.
As for the record itself, I wholeheartedly agree that illmatic is hip hop's holy grail, an album that will forever remain at the top of every critic's list. This book affirms its importance and not only did it make me revisit the album through a different lens, it helped me better understand the the black experience via the plight of a young man navigating the queensbridge projects. An amazing tour de force to say the least..

[Christian Holub · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nas' "Illmatic" used a different producer for almost every track. So this book, which takes a deep look at one of the most influential hip-hop albums of all time, uses a different author for every chapter (one one each track, and then an assortment of interviews, previously published pieces, and other assorted bonus features at the back of the book). The diversity of authors and voices makes for a ton of fun; one writer analyzes "N.Y. State of Mind" through a global, postcolonial perspective, for instance, while another (Michael Eric Dyson, the editor of the collection) reads "One Love" alongside the personal history of his own brother's imprisonment. I love thinking deeply about pop culture, and this book is a great example of that. I learned a ton about American history, hip-hop, and criticism, among other things. An extremely entertaining and educational experience if you enjoy "Illmatic" as immensely as I do. Even if you're one of those people who's tried listening and still don't understand what all the fuss is about, maybe this book can help connect some of the dots for you.

[Benjamin Fasching-Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is almost as good as the album that inspired it. Understandable smooth shit that will plant jewels in your brain. I especially liked Michael Eric Dyson's essay about "One Love" and incarceration, Mark Anthony Neal is always thought provoking... follow him on facebook. Kyra D. Gaunt disappointed a little, it seems like she thinks rappers should promote marriage or something, but at least there was some consideration of Nas's problematic representation of gender roles.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some really great explication in this book that provides context and insight into Nas' lyrics and samples. There are also a few chapters in this book (there's one for every track of Illmatic) that went way off track and were complete wastes of time. I get the feeling the authors did not spend much time planning their thoughts or editing what they had written. Nas is often praised for using few words to convey complex images and meanings. They failed to head this very point and left a lot of "filler" in this book.

The final section, "Remixes," was probably the most worthwhile part of the book. Reading the interviews with the man himself made me appreciate Nas more than anything else.

[Erin Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really, really loved the concept of this book. Nas is a classic hip-hop fixture, and Illmatic is essentially the album that rookie emcees wish they could achieve. The people who they had write in this book were a pretty good line-up, however I found that it wasn't necessarily a book that I could read all the way straight through. I skipped around a lot because some parts were really interesting and others not so much. The chapter that was really good however was the "Halftime" chapter, perhaps pay extra attention there.

[Wesley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some parts of this book were absolutely phenomenal. Some not so much.
The fault in this book was that of the main chapters, 3/4ths of the book, was written by all different people. Ideas from one chapter would be rehashed and fully explained in the next. It became repetitive.
The "remixes" at the end were similar. Some were awesome, like the interview with Nas was nuts. Others seemed simply like an album review that was similar to the first part of the book.

[Shayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am an avid Nasty Nas fan. Born to Use mics is a must-read for those who are fans of Nas or hip-hop in general. Each essay describes each Illmatic track and parallels the personal and political views of the author. After reading this book, I listened to Illmatic differently and found a deeper respect for Nas' body of work.

[T · Rating 3 out of 5]

Felt the book was a tad over-intellectualised in parts and some of the writers strayed a little too far off topic. The Remixes part of the book was the best bit, loved hearing what Bobbito had to say about it.

If you're expecting to hear about Illmatic and how it became great, then maybe this isn't the book, focused more on the impact or world events than the affect it had on hiphop.

[Devin Curtis · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best analysis of Nas' lyrics is actually in the bonus section in the back where they placed the other best part of the book - the interviews and articles from the time Illmatic was released. Weird how most of the authors in this book couldn't stick to Illmatic, but seemed compulsively drawn to talking about music videos, later works... other issues entirely. Still, good read.

[Terrae Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book itself deserved 3 stars. At times, it felt like the authors spent too much time trying to outsmart the reader. With that said, it was an okay read. The other star was the book making me revisit Illmatic for a thousandth listen. A lot of memories resurfaced from reading Born to Use Mics. Too bad hip-hop doesn't sound like that anymore...

[jewelthinks · Rating 5 out of 5]

great read. although sometimes it's hard to imagine, hip hop being discussed and analyzed from a scholastic point, this was an inspirational book.

i wasn't so much on illmatic before, but i can appreciate things being put into a historical context.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Geeky look at the classic LP by Nas. This is only going to appeal if you are very serious about hip hop culture and specifically, the music and creative style of Nas. If that is the case there's lots to enjoy here. If it isn't, steer clear...

[Suppaspears9206 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waited over a year for this to come out. Picked it up first thing in the morning on it's release date. A great book about highly poetic album. Nasir Jones: my favorite artist

[ACRL]

Read by ACRL Member of the Week Kimberley Bugg. Learn more about Kimberley on the ACRL Insider blog.

[Michael Glover · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like Nas, this is a must read. Also, if you're a Michael supporter, this is one for the shelf.

[Venessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was worth reading love Nasir Jones <3

[H-Man · Rating 3 out of 5]

n paar ziemlich gute essays dabei