Hit-Boy Says He Doesn’t See Himself Working With Nas Again

Six albums in three years apparently will not lead to a seventh. Hit-Boy says he does not expect to work with Nas again, closing the door on a partnership that produced two trilogies of albums and helped Nas earn his first Grammy. The producer offered the surprising assessment during a conversation with Elliott Wilson and DJ Vlad, but stopped short of explaining exactly what changed between them.

“We did a lot of great work, but I don’t see us working again,” Hit-Boy said. When Vlad asked why, he acknowledged that there was more behind the decision than he was willing to discuss. “There’s a lot of reasons, you know what I mean? But it’s something I don’t really wanna dig too deep in ’cause it’s pretty deep.” He instead pointed back to what they accomplished together, adding, “Respect to what we did get accomplished in three years.”

That three-year stretch began with King’s Disease in 2020 and became one of the most fruitful rapper-producer runs of Nas’ career. The album won Best Rap Album at the 2021 Grammys, giving Nas his first win after years of nominations. They followed it with King’s Disease II and Magic in 2021, then King’s Disease III the next year. Magic 2 and Magic 3 arrived in 2023, bringing the total to six full-length collaborations. Hit-Boy says the sessions produced roughly 80 songs during that period.

The possibility of another reunion once seemed much more open. Magic 3 was presented as the finale of their run, but both men left room for the partnership to continue someday. Hit-Boy reflected on their near-daily creative relationship after the album’s release and wrote that he was “right here whenever forever bro.” Nas was even more explicit while discussing the accomplishment, saying, “We can definitely go for more albums, easily.”

Hit-Boy’s new comments make that optimism harder to read as the current state of their relationship. He did not accuse Nas of wrongdoing or describe a falling out, and his refusal to explain the “pretty deep” reasons behind his position leaves plenty unknown. What he did make clear is that he now views those six albums as a completed body of work rather than the beginning of another chapter.