Nas Drops One Of The Feature Verses Of His Career & It’s DEEP (Audio)

From his Main Source “Live At The Barbeque” debut on wax to seminal records by AZ, Raekwon, Fat Joe, Scarface, and Beastie Boys, Nas is a lethal feature MC. Across the industry, for more than 25 years, the Queensbridge poet has been highly sought after—across genres to kick some of that realness.

In a year where he’s already laced key verses for DJ Khaled, French Montana, and a number of soundtrack spots, Nasir Jones shows up big for Robin Thicke. While the former Star Trak Records artist may not be known as the kind of singer to put heavy substance—especially surrounding race and society on his records, Nas changes that. The opening of “Deep” is just that, as the guest MC rhymes acapella with finesse and fire in his heart.

Nas’ Album Is Done & The Video Is MAJOR

Here are some of the lyrics, with Nas speaking as directly as he seemingly ever has—as a Black man, a concerned father, and an affected human being:

White man with a gun apprehended, he still alive
Black man with a gun, he has no chance to survive
They gon’ shoot him dead soon as they see the brown of his eyes
And they ask me, “Why you ain’t smilin’ Nas?”
Cause I have a son and I die inside when I gotta tell him what was told to me
Can’t play with your water gun son ’cause the police see
A seven years old as a threat
They think it’s right to kill a seven years old on sight ’cause he ain’t white
So baby if I’m actin’ uptight
When our conversation is weak, it ain’t you
It’s just it ain’t that deep

After Robin’s evocative lyrics about a world amiss, Nas comes back around to reflect on the upcoming election, showing praise of powerful women in a litany of fields, and his own dreams as of late.

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Reportedly belonging to Robin Thicke’s upcoming Morning Sun album, this is a song that lives up to its name—and shows that even without a new album of his own on shelves, 2016 has been a banner year for Nas.