Nas recently scored a big win when his proposal to expand a casino in Queens, New York City, took a major step towards approval — a step that came after a Jay-Z-backed proposal to open a casino in Times Square was rejected. Needless to say, the situation elicited a big response from fans of both rappers due to their beef decades ago.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, the Illmatic rapper was asked about the reaction to a community advisory committee’s approval of the $5.5 billion expansion of the Resorts World Casino in Queens, which he was involved with. [It’s not a done deal yet: the plan still needs the approval of the State Gaming Commission.]
Speaking with Andre Gee, Nas was asked why he thinks fans are still keeping “tally” of the wins and losses between the two rappers despite them both long ago moving on from their issues.
“It is just a thing that some people are going to talk about,” he said. “No one has any control over things like that. I still study Rakim and Big Daddy Kane. Some rap fans just like to go off on those things from time to time. That’s it.”
Tensions between the two artists date back possibly as early as 1996, before exploding out into the open in 2001 with Nas’ “Stillmatic Freestyle,” followed shortly thereafter by both “Takeover” and “Ether.”
The rappers reconciled in 2005 and have seemingly been on friendly terms ever since. They most recently collaborated on DJ Khaled’s 2021 track “Sorry Not Sorry,” and appeared alongside each other in the music video.
Last month, the $5.4 billion Times Square casino proposal, which was backed by Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, was rejected by that neighborhood’s Community Advisory Board. The Nas-backed proposal to expand Resorts World Casino in Queens, however, was approved in a unanimous decision. At the time, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards took the opportunity to crack a joke at Hov’s expense.
“Sorry, Jay-Z, we win again,” Richards joked.
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