J. Cole tells the story of playing Nas his song ‘Let Nas Down’ for the first time

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As a fan who’s been following J. Cole’s journey since his debut, I must say that the latest episode of “Inevitable” has added another layer to my admiration for him. The story behind “Let Nas Down” is nothing short of extraordinary! It’s not every day you see such a serendipitous encounter between two musical legends on a flight.

J. Cole is giving fans a peek into some fascinating tales and backstage details from his recently launched audio series, titled “Inevitable.” Recently, he’s been discussing one of his songs from 2013, “Let Nas Down,” in one of these stories.

After learning that Nas, a beloved rapper of Cole’s, wasn’t fond of his 2011 track “Work Out,” Cole composed a song titled “Letting Nas Down,” which delves into his perspective on having supposedly let down the rap icon by not meeting his expectations.

On the occasion, Cole recounted that he initially played the track “Let Nas Down” to his manager Ibraham “Ib” Hamad at a Houston airport. To his surprise, Nas suddenly showed up. “He hands me the headphones back,” Cole narrated, as reported by HipHopDX, “‘No way,’ Ib exclaimed. ‘This guy Ib says, ‘Yo, that’s Nas right there.’ He was about to board the plane … I said, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’

At that instant, Cole exclaimed something similar to, “‘This is truly extraordinary. This is unbelievable,’ he said. He doesn’t believe in mere coincidences. Instead, he felt, ‘This is a message from God, keep going, stay the course.’ Interestingly, Cole had never met Nas before.

Later on, Cole found out that Nas was seated directly behind him during the flight. Immediately, he didn’t miss the opportunity to play for him the track titled “Let Nas Down.

Cole reminisced about boarding the plane and thinking, “I must share this tune with him. It’s a song I’m meant to share with him.” Upon meeting him, he greeted him warmly and said, “Dude, this is going to sound utterly unbelievable. I just composed this song two days ago. Incredibly, I find myself sitting next to you on this flight unexpectedly. Yet, I feel compelled to play this song for you.

Initially, Cole played a track for him, but I can’t recall his response. Nevertheless, it appears Nas enjoyed it, as he later tweeted that Cole didn’t disappoint with the song “Work Out.” Interestingly, they also teamed up for a remix of “Let Nas Down,” which they named “Made Nas Proud.

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2024-12-06 22:23