Conversation so far:
Where was the mainstream direction going?
CANNOTANSWER.
How was Nas involved in the firm?
a supergroup consisting of Nas, AZ, Foxy Brown, and Cormega.
What did this super group do?
began working on their debut album.
What was this debut album called?
The Firm: The Album.

Question: Was this album successful?
Self-contained rewrite: Was the album called The Firm successful?