King's Disease III

***King's Disease III*** is the sixteenth studio album by American rapper Nas. It was released on November 11, 2022 through Mass Appeal Records. The album is the third entry in Nas' *King's Disease* series of albums, and acts as a sequel to his 2020 album *King's Disease* and his 2021 album *King's Disease II*. It was produced entirely by Hit-Boy. The record debuted at No. 10 on the *Billboard* 200 and sold 29,000 units in its first week.

## Synopsis

"Father Time is undefeated," goes the old sports adage, but on *King's Disease III*, legendary Queens-hailing MC Nas is out to prove that age ain't nothin' but a number. The project marks the third album-long pairing of the 49-year-old and Hit-Boy, the Fontana, California-originating producer 14 years his junior. The two have clearly stumbled onto something special, Nas sounding as comfortable in his own skin as ever when telling the stories of his developmental years ("Legit," "Recession Proof," "Reminisce"), celebrating his career's longevity ("Thun," "30," "I'm on Fire"), and even staring down his own mortality ("Once a Man, Twice a Child").

With Hit-Boy production—and also maybe some distance from the pressures of his days as contender for New York rap's throne—Nas relishes the freedom to indulge some of his more experimental whims, like imagining, on "First Time," what it was like for different fans to hear his music for the first time, or on "Beef," where he raps from the perspective of street static itself. There are no credited guest MCs on *King's Disease III*, a subtle acknowledgment that as prolific as Nas has been, the man once known as The Pharaoh still has plenty to say. And that's not to mention, as he does on "Ghetto Reporter," the many people he has to say it to: "When I'm 50 years old," he says. "I wanna have 50-year-old fans, 60-year-old fans, *and* 16-year-old fans."

## Background

* In August 2021, it was hinted of a possible *King's Disease 3*, where Nas told Ebro Darden of Apple Music's *Rap Life Radio* (Ep. 93), "I think if we do another one, I'm excited about that idea, but you know, we're celebrating this one now."
* On December 24, 2021 the album *Magic* was released. On its track "Ugly," it revealed of the upcoming *KD3* project with the following lyric: 'I'm on offense every day until I see the love / *KD3* on the way, this just to feed the buzz.'
* In a January 2022 interview with *HotNewHipHop*, Hit-Boy told them, "Man, we ain't nowhere with KD3. It's all in our mind right now. We planned it out. I've been listening to different sounds and things I want to do just to differentiate it and just set my game up. You know what I'm saying? That's all I've been on, just studying different genres and sh\*t like that, and studying different sounds that I want to implement, but definitely can't give the sauce away right now."
* On October 18, 2022 the cover artwork was shared online by Nas and Hit-Boy, which also revealed the release date.
* On November 9, 2022 the duo unveiled the tracklist.
* On February 24, 2023 Nas performed a "King's Disease Trilogy" one-night only performance at the Madison Square Garden.

## Critical reception

*King's Disease III* was met with widespread acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album has received an average score of 88 based on eleven reviews, indicating universal acclaim. The aggregator, AnyDecentMusic?, assigned the score of 7.9 based on six critic reviews. Initially it held the score of 92 on Metacritic, making it "the highest rated hip hop album of 2022" according to Hip Hop by the Numbers. This would've made it Nas' highest score ever, rated even higher than the 20th-anniversary of his *Illmatic* album.

David Crone of AllMusic assessed the record to be "at once loose and deeply complex, effortless in its incisiveness yet still dazzling at its peaks. The three bullions on the album's cover say it best: this duo keep on producing gold." For *The Daily Telegraph*, Thomas Hobbs wrote, "Although *King's Disease III* might have some tonal missteps, Nas and Hit-Boy should be applauded for bringing warm soul samples back into hip hop culture at a time of such darkness and uncertainty." *Complex* reviewed, "The best parts of the LP see Nas lace nostalgic production with couplets that can oscillate between searing and paternal, connecting them with writerly details and spurts of steely-eyed sincerity."

*NME* gave a perfect score of five stars, opining that the rapper's "story and passion for storytelling clearly endures. [...] the New York rapper has put the seal on a strong album trilogy that proves that, three decades in, he's still a force to be reckoned with." *Consequence* in similar sentiments found the record to be "at his most creative and confident in decade."

*Clash* described *KD3* as "lighter than its predecessor" and "fantastically consistent," while *Pitchfork* called it "loose and expert and finally nimble again." *Slant Magazine* was more critical, finding that "By adhering to a creative formula typically associated with many foundational Golden Era classics, *King's Disease III* often feels like a spartan exercise in pure technical ability."

Writing for *HipHopDX*, Eric Diep claimed that "*KD3* keeps Nas in the relevancy conversation because his voice is still impactful, calling to action when some might say he doesn't need to do this anymore. It's a lesson in purposeful storytelling and aging with grace." *RapReviews.com* penned in their review, "Nas sounds like he's regained his confidence as the king once more. He sounds like the king. He's in that "Ether" mindset once more—not necessarily as vicious, but simply sounding like he's willing to name names and it feels like he's genuinely having fun with his writing."

## Track listing

All tracks produced by Hit-Boy, except where noted.

**Sample credits**

* "Legit" contains a sample of "A Heart Is a House for Love" written by Tristin Sigerson, Davitt Sigerson, and Bob Thiele, as performed by Billy Valentine and The Dells from The Five Heartbeats.
* "Ghetto Reporter" contains a sample of "Just Us" performed by Richard Pryor.
* "Thun" contains a sample of "The Bridge Is Over" written and performed by DJ Scott La Rock & KRS-One under the musical group Boogie Down Productions.
* "Hood2Hood" contains an interpolation of "Da Butt" written by Marcus Miller and performed by group E.U..
* "Get Light" contains an interpolation of "Party and Bullshit" written by Easy Mo Bee, as performed by The Notorious B.I.G.
* "Reminisce" contains a sample of "You Remind Me", written by Dave "Jam" Hall and Eric Milteer, as performed by Mary J. Blige.
* "I'm on Fire" contains elements from *NBA Jam* and *Street Fighter II: The World Warrior*.
* "Beef" contains a sample of "N.Y. State Of Mind", written by DJ Premier, as performed by Nas.
* "Til' My Last Breath" contains a sample of "Narco", written by Thom Jongkind, Idir Makhlaf and Timothy Jude Smith, as performed by Blasterjaxx and Timmy Trumpet.

## Media

Gallery
Twitter bannerYouTube banner**@Nas**: "11•11"
* October 18, 2022
* Twitter
**@Nas**: "11•11 #KD3"
* November 9, 2022
* Twitter
* November 10, 2022
* Twitter
**@Nas**: "#KD3 out now on @Spotify"
* November 11, 2022
* Twitter

Merchandise
* Gold Cassette Tape
* $20.00
* Color Vinyl
* $40.00
* Black Vinyl
* $34.00
* Deluxe Vinyl Bundle
* $125.00
* Signed Test Pressings
* $250.00
* CD
* $15.00

Videos
* Teaser
* The Daily Show

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Brown, Preezy (November 21, 2022). "Nas' 'King's Disease III' Album Rated the Best Rap Release of 2022". *Vibe*.
2. ↑ Anderson, Trevor (November 25, 2022). "Nas Ties Jay-Z for Most Top 10 Albums on Billboard 200 Among Rappers". *Billboard*.
3. ↑ Okon, Wongo (August 28, 2021). "Nas Calls Hit-Boy His 'Quincy Jones' and Talks About the Possibility of 'King's Disease 3'". *Uproxx*.
4. ↑ Kearns, Sarah (December 24, 2021). "Nas and Hit-Boy Confirm 'King's Disease 3' Is in the Works". *Hypebeast*.
5. ↑ Zidel, Alex (January 10, 2022). "Hit-Boy Gives "King's Disease 3" Update". *HotNewHipHop*.
6. ↑ Jenn, London (October 19, 2022). "Nas & Hit-Boy Reveal 'King's Disease 3' Cover-Art, Album Due Next Month". *AllHipHop*.
7. ↑ Bustard, Andy (November 9, 2022). "Nas & Hit-Boy Share 'King's Disease 3' Tracklist". *HipHopDX*.
8. ↑ "Madison Square Garden (@thegarden)". *Instagram*. November 11, 2022.
9. ↑ "Nas - King's Disease III". *AnyDecentMusic?*
10. ↑ Crone, David (November 11, 2022). "*King's Disease III* Review by David Crone". *AllMusic*.
11. ↑ Hobbs, Thomas (November 11, 2022). "Christine and the Queens Turns Electro Gothic, Wizkid Is a Wonder – the Week's Best Albums". *The Daily Telegraph*.
12. ↑ Berry, Peter (November 16, 2022). "Nas Celebrates Living to Tell the Tale on 'King's Disease III'". *Complex*.
13. ↑ Smith, Niall (November 14, 2022). "Nas – 'King's Disease III' Review: Hip-Hop Great Delivers Compelling Conclusion to His Album Trilogy". *NME*.
14. ↑ Shorter, Marcus (November 11, 2022). "Music Album Reviews Nas' *King's Disease III* Saves the Best for Last". *Consequence*.
15. ↑ Murray, Robin (November 15, 2022). "Nas – The King's Disease III". *Clash*.
16. ↑ Thompson, Paul (November 21, 2022). "Nas: *King's Disease III*". *Pitchfork*.
17. ↑ Attard, Paul (November 16, 2022). "Nas *King's Disease III* Review: A Rap Icon at His Myth-Making Merriest". *Slant Magazine*.
18. ↑ Diep, Eric (November 14, 2022). "Nas 'King's Disease 3' Cements His Impressive Second Act". *HipHopDX*.
19. ↑ Jones, Grant (November 29, 2022). "Nas :: *King's Disease III*". *RapReviews.com*.
20. ↑ "Albumism Selects: The 100 Best Albums of 2022". *Albumism*. December 4, 2022.
21. ↑ "The Best Albums of 2022". *Complex*. December 1, 2022.
22. ↑ "Top 15 Rap Albums of 2022". *Consequence*. December 12, 2022.
23. ↑ Raible, Allan (December 28, 2022). "Review: 50 Best Albums of 2022". *Good Morning America*.
24. ↑ "The 67 Best Albums of 2022". *RIFF Magazine*. December 3, 2022.
25. ↑ "The 25 Best Hip-Hop Albums of 2022". *Rolling Stone*. December 15, 2022.
26. ↑ "Top 50 Albums of 2022". *YouTube*. December 24, 2022.
27. ↑ "The 33 Best Albums of 2022". *The Ringer*. December 6, 2022.
28. ↑ "Here Are the Best Hip-Hop Projects of 2022". *XXL*. December 13, 2022.

Template:King's Disease III