20 Hip Hop Albums You Must Hear Before You Die

3. Nas - Illmatic

We all know that there's already a rapper from New York called Prodigy, but if we're being honest, the real 'prodigy' from New York was Nasir Jones a.k.a Nas. He gave hip hop fans a little taste of his greatness on the legendary Live at the BBQ by Main Source but came out guns blazing when he released Illmatic.

The album had so much impact in the hip hop world and the battle to sign Nas was so ferocious, Nas produced a documentary detailing the entire experience of putting it together. He had powerful lyrics, incredible beats and rough voice that emphasised every word in the most enjoyable way. The fact that a classic song like N.Y State of Mind was done in one take (Yes, really!) just goes to show how outstanding a rapper he was at only 20-years-old.