Claim: Nas has been working since at least 1994.

Nasir Bin Olu Dara Jones -LRB- -LSB- nɑːˈsɪər -RSB- born September 14 , 1973 -RRB- , better known by his stage name Nas -LSB- ˈnɑːz -RSB- , is an American rapper , record producer , actor , and entrepreneur . The son of jazz musician Olu Dara , Nas has released eight consecutive platinum and multi-platinum albums and has sold over 25,000,000 records worldwide . He is also an entrepreneur through his own record label ; he serves as associate publisher of Mass Appeal magazine and is the owner of a Fila sneaker store . He is currently signed to Mass Appeal Records .   His musical career began in 1991 , as a featured artist on Main Source 's `` Live at the Barbeque '' . His debut album Illmatic -LRB- 1994 -RRB- received universal acclaim from both critics and the hip-hop community and is frequently ranked as the greatest hip hop album of all time . Nas 's follow-up It Was Written debuted at # 1 on the Billboard 200 , stayed on top for four consecutive weeks , went double platinum in two months , and made Nas internationally known . From 2001-05 , Nas was involved in a highly publicised feud with fellow New York rapper Jay Z. Nas signed to Def Jam in 2006 . In 2010 , he released Distant Relatives , a collaboration album with reggae musician Damian Marley , donating all royalties to charities active in Africa . His eleventh studio album , Life Is Good -LRB- 2012 -RRB- was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards .   Nas is often named as one of the greatest hip-hop artists . MTV ranked him at number 5 on their list of `` The Greatest MCs of All Time '' . In 2012 , The Source ranked him number two on their list of the `` Top 50 Lyricists of All Time '' . In 2013 , Nas was ranked fourth on MTV 's `` Hottest MCs in the Game '' list . About.com ranked him first on their list of the `` 50 Greatest MCs of All Time '' in 2014 , and a year later , Nas was featured on `` The 10 Best Rappers of All Time '' list by Billboard .   In 2016 , Nas began narrating The Get Down and rapping as Adult Ezekiel of 1996 .