Life Is Good

Back When

Nas

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

24

End

165

Internal

56

Multi

139

Slant

6

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight
[Refrain: MC Shan sample (Nas)]
"You love to hear the story✦
How it all, how it all, got started,✦ got started"✦
(How it all got started,✦ yeah)
"You love to hear the story✦
How it all, how it all, got started,✦ got started"✦
(How it, how it all got started)✦ ah yeah!
"You love to hear the story✦
How it all got started,✦ got started"✦
(Hear the story,✦ how it all, start it off
Start it off, start it off, start it off
How it all got started)✦
"Back when-back✦ when-back✦ when-back✦ when (back when)
Back when (back when), back when-back✦ when-back✦ when"
[Verse 2: Nas]
To call them fake today✦ is hate, real niggas✦ extinct
Pac left me inside✦ a rap world with niggas✦ that wink
At other rappers, undercover niggas✦ spit every✦ way
Won't be surprised if all their rides✦ have federal plates✦
Let alone✦ their wardrobes and Studio✦ 4 flow
It was real when I appeared, it would've been some jaws broke
Nas, my real name, stage name, same thing
How could you let these lames✦ claim king, I'm so ashamed, man
I light a L for Vernon✦ for niggas✦ who would burn in Hell for Vernon✦
10th Street, 12th Street, Nightmare on Elm Street
Pimps creep, delve deep inside✦ the editorials
Of the ghetto✦ queens, kings, stories true
Who possesses the testicular fortitude
To blow away✦ myths that's a hindrance to all of you
You blame your own shortcomings on sex and race
The mafia, homosexuals and all the Jews
It's hogwash point of views, stereotypical
Anti-Semitic like the foul words Gibson✦ spewed
And it's pathetic, I don't get the credit✦ I deserve
That's why I hate doing interviews
But I don't sweat it, study✦ long, study✦ raw
My man Dion said Nas over-think the songs he writing
I'm not a wack performer standing near a corny✦ hype man
I got the Donism in me, I'm here to enlighten
[Hook: MC Shan sample (Nas)]
"You love to hear the story✦
How it all, how it all, got started,✦ got started"✦
(Yeah, how it all got started,✦ yeah)
"You love to hear the story✦
How it all, how it all, got started,✦ got started"✦
(How it, how it all got started)✦
"You love to hear the story✦
How it all got started,✦ got started"✦
(Hear the story,✦ how it all, start it off
Start it off, start it off, start it off
How it all got started)✦
"Back when-back✦ when-back✦ when-back✦ when (back when)
Back when (back when), back when
Back when, (back when) back when"

Technical Breakdown

7.9
Multisyllabic Rhymes8.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes9.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres7.0

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm8.0

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity5.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control8.5

Performance and control

Computed Score7.91

Production

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Critic Analysis
RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

Nas utilizes his signature 'street-reporter' cadence to bridge 90s authenticity with modern disillusionment, emphasizing narrative weight over complex wordplay density.

B+
8.5
Multisyllabic
9.5
Internal Rhymes
8
Cadence / Flow
5
Vocabulary
7
Wordplay
8.5
Delivery
internal rhyme chainconsonant clustersrepetition as rhythmic anchornarrative thematic framing
Rhyme Architecture: The verse relies on multi-syllabic internal patterns (extinct/wink/spit/plates) that anchor to end-rhymes (plates/breaks), demonstrating fluid pocket-riding that favors sonic consistency over break-neck speed.
Verified Doubles & Entendres

"Pac left me inside a rap world with niggas that wink / At other rappers"

① Physical act of collusion or 'winking' between rappers indicating pre-planned or fake beef.② A dismissal of modern peers as lacking the serious, uncompromising integrity associated with Tupac Shakur's era.

"I light a L for Vernon for niggas who would burn in Hell for Vernon"

① Smoking a blunt as a memorial tribute to a deceased associate named Vernon.② Pointing out the hypocrisy of those who would suffer eternal damnation for the sake of the same person they now claim to honor.

Authoritative vocal presence

Coherent narrative arc

Strong rhythmic synchronization

Evocative imagery regarding the shift in hip-hop culture

Limited usage of high-level metaphor

Vocabulary remains standard for the artist

Reliance on established tropes rather than innovation

User Scores