As a long time fan it is great to see that your music has allowed you to stay relevant in the hip-hop industry for over 15 years. You have been with hip-hop through the good times and the bad; and managed to build a successful career for yourself without ever feeling the need to adjust your sound based on what is working for other artists and have stayed true to your fans throughout the years. You have albums in your catalog that most hip-hop fans cannot deny are classics and your legacy in the history books of hip-hop is cemented.

On behalf of this same hip-hop culture that has supported you throughout you career, I am respectfully asking that you change the name of your next album.

I understand that you have chosen the title N****r for your next album release. While I am sure there are plenty of symbolic and personal reasons you feel this album title is appropriate, I don’t think middle America is going to get it.

In fact, I think that many misconceptions will be made about your statement with this album title and at the end of the day it’s going to bring unnecessary attention to hip-hop as a whole. We’ve already witnessed a variety of backlash, misconceptions and false assumptions regarding this project since you publicly announced the title (again) a few months ago. This sensationalism will only increase once you actually begin promoting the release and the media realizes you’re really going through with this.

We are all aware that this word has become ambiguous to some people in it’s proper use. To some it is a derogatory term that is considered to be one of the ugliest words on the English language. To others, the word, or variations of it, has become an accepted term of endearment that at times, appears to embed itself into the vocabulary of those who use it frequently. Regardless of how one interprets the meaning, the word is definitely controversial.

I believe what you are doing with this word is outside the realm of what our culture has deemed to be acceptable use of the word. You are trying to commercialize it.

I’m a firm believer in freedom of speech. We live in a country that allows us to make statements that many find objectionable. With this freedom comes great responsibility and we, as hip-hop, should strive to demonstrate the proper way to exercise this freedom without recklessly abusing the privilege. You are not helping us with this cause.

As I mentioned earlier, this controversy you are attempting to cause is unnecessary and definitely not something that hip-hop needs right now. We seem to be constantly on the defensive, having to account for the misconceptions that are made about our culture due to the way it is portrayed by a majority of the media. Why do you feel the need to incite a new battle with these people? No one ever wins.

With the 2008 Presidential Election already in full swing, hip-hop has an opportunity right now to do something positive. If our leaders in the hip-hop industry stand on the front lines and can impact this election, the media may even have to swallow their pride and say something positive about what we’re doing. Nas, you are one of these artists that I could envision leading the hip-hop generation on an initiative like this. But it appears you have other plans. While many of us will be working to achieve a great milestone in U.S. history by electing our first black President, you’ll be working on selling N****r.

I pray that you will come to your senses on this one before it gets out of hand. You’ve made whatever point it is you’ve been trying to make both times you have announced this album title and have gained the attention you seem to be seeking. You have nothing to gain from this album title and a lot of credibility to lose. It’s not too late to change the name and judging by the sales numbers on your last album, I don’t think you’re going to lose any fans by taking another route with your album title.

In closing, I believe that you should think back in what motivated you to pen the following line on your track These Are Our Heroes “Tavis Smiley, Michael Eric Dyson, Stokely Carmichael, let’s try to be like them.” and think about the differences in what these people do and what you are doing with this album. Hopefully you will understand hip-hop needs you more right now than we need an album called N****r.

Sincerely,

DJ Xplosive