I like Nas, but nobody has had more chances to live up to their potential and flounder it away with varying gimmicks that didn't work.
Honestly Nas had the world at his feet after his first album. Tried to create a Version 2.0 with his second album and just ended up creating a weaker album. He just gradually went downhill after.
Proceeded to follow Jay-Z into the materialistic rap persona despite not having any of the wealth or celebrity credibility Jay had that would make one a plausible 'bling bling' era rapper.
He was dissed by 2Pac, then instead of doing anything about it, sucked up to him, and said he was honoured to have been mentioned. It would have been a bold move, and possibly a career defining one to fire back at Pac especially as Nas was actually a better MC. He missed this opportunity instead got into a childish tit for tat with Jay-Z.
Nas' ex brought all the boys to the yard, probably for orgies and that's why they divorced.
He proclaimed hip-hop was dead in 2006 and nothing screams hip hop is dead more so than having Will.I.AM on your title track. The irony.
Nas also proclaims this despite himself failing to do much for hip hop despite several attempts in the 12 years between his debut and his proclamation.
Nowadays, he's simply irrelevant.
As for Public Enemy, as JWB said it's just Chuck D shouting tired and cliched 'black power' lines whilst Flava Flav repeats 'hey chuck I don't think they heard you' and they add in a 'Terminator X' adlib. Unless you're an oppressed black man in the 80's, which nobody here is, I don't see how their music is more relatable than say, Drake's
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