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*In honor of Black History Month, Nas penned an open letter celebrating the work of black musical greats and how they’ve had a profound impact on his life as part of Google Arts & Culture’s Black History Month celebration.
Growing up in New York’s Queensbridge projects, Nas recalled being surrounded by music. “We had oodles of instruments at the family crib, many of them with origins in the Motherland,” Nas wrote. “It was through the blues and jazz and folk music that my father played that I learned the importance of our history — our African ancestry, our struggles here as black Americans and, ultimately, our great triumphs too.”
The rapper praised artists like Robert Johnson, Louis Armstrong, Sarah Vaughan and Slick Rick for using their talents to highlight the black experience in their musical works.
“Our music has been a relentless advocate for our story, which plays a crucial role in the American narrative: Red, white and blues, baby,” he continued. “I would realize — through the education I received from my parents and my own travels — that Robert Johnson, Louis Armstrong, Sarah Vaughan and Slick Rick were one in the same. Native storytellers who shined a light on our purpose, preserved our legacy and, without question, rocked the house. The conversation never stops and we all continue to push it steadily along, through our arts n crafts and even within the way we speak.”
Nas and Google also released an accompanying video with the rapper’s open letter, in which images of musical pioneers like Billie Holiday, Herbie Hancock, Nina Simone, Duke Ellington enhance his words. A bluesy arrangement plays underneath, courtesy of Keyon Harrold.
Watch the video above.
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