When Nas originally announced the arrival of King's Disease, his brand new album produced in entirety by Hit-Boy, few expected a full-blown Firm Fiasco to occur. And yet, in the appropriately titled "Full Circle," Nas managed to assemble the entire Firm -- including Dr. Dre -- for one more go-around. Alongside AZ, Cormega, and Foxy Brown, Nas opens a veritable Pandora's box worth of nostalgia, enough to put a smile on the face of any East Coast connoisseur. Especially after Nas and Cormega found themselves embroiled in a beef that led to Stillmatic's scathing "Destroy And Rebuild."
On "Full Circle," The Firm takes to a classy instrumental from Hit-Boy, who seems to have grasped the group's inclination toward distinguished mafioso imagery. And while each party fares admirably, it seems as if AZ consistently brings his A-game whenever Nas is involved, ekeing out a standout verse. "One of the foulest, some would say I was childish, money-driven," he reflects. "Mischievous, I perceived it as livin', gifts and ribbons." And for the ribbon atop the cake, Dr. Dre slides through to hold down the outro, firing off a few bars for old time's sake. Be sure to check out King's Disease right here, a return to form for the legendary emcee.
QUOTABLE LYRICS
One of the foulest, some would say I was childish, money-driven
Mischievous, I perceived it as livin', gifts and ribbons
Any kisses on the lips was forbidden, I was on it
She curvy, then shorty was cornered, no worries
For the naughty, it was higher performance, or was it really?
The games that I was playin' was silly
Similar to them days when I was packin' that milly, it could've killed me