Nas just released his latest album, Magic 2. The project has plenty of amazing collaborations in the tracklist, including 50 Cent and 21 Savage. But one collab we weren't expecting was a reminiscence about the one and only Tupac Shakur. On the penultimate track, "Pistols On Your Album Cover," Nas delivers a spoken outro in which he recalls introducing Tupac to the delight of drinking Hennessy. He says, "I remember I put 2Pac onto that Henny. Howard University, Howard Homecoming, D.C. He's like, 'What's this?' He drank that sh*t though, word."
As Nas speaks the memory into existence, he calls it "crazy, super hard facts." The title of the song is an homage to Boogie Down Productions. Hennessy, the French cognac company, has featured prominently in many of Tupac's songs. In 1996, "How Do U Want It" had the rapper going, "It's either him or me, champagne, Hennessy." His 2004 posthumous release of "Hennessy" obviously included multiple nods to the liquor brand. On Nas' "Pistols On Your Album Cover," he shouts out Tupac's stepfather, Mutulu Shakur as well. Mutulu passed away earlier this month after a battle with cancer.
Read more: Nas Unveils "Magic 2" Tracklist
Nas' Memory Lane Trips On "Magic 2"
Nas has been down memory lane a time or two, especially when it comes to his tumultuous relationship with the late, great Tupac. In his 2021 album, King's Disease II, he mentions his brother, Jungle, heading out to California to squash a reported beef between Nas and Pac. This was an attempt to bridge the gap between "East Coast vs. West Coast," a popular rap feud that integrates different lyrical styles. This was epitomized in the 90s, with Tupac spearheading the West and Nas pairing up with the Notorious B.I.G. for the NY-based East.
Nas explains in the song "Death Row East," "I flew to Vegas to shoot the ‘Street Dreams’ video and link with 2Pac. Tried to squash the East Coast/West Coast beef. We didn’t talk, but he was still alive in the hospital. And it rained that day in Vegas. Rest In Power." Tupac is back in the news due to new developments in his homicide investigation, now in its 27th year. Just this week, a Las Vegas house was searched in connection to the rapper's 1996 murder.
Read more: Eminem Praises Nas' Classic Album "Illmatic"
