It Was Written

Affirmative Action

Nas

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

End

166

Internal

Multi

240

Slant

Chain

Rhyme Groups — hover to spotlight

[Verse 2: Cormega]

Criminal thoughts in the blue Porsche, my destiny's to be the new boss

That nigga^✦ Paulie gotta^✦ die, he too soft

That nigga's^✦ dead on a ki of heroin^✦

They found his head on the couch wit' his dick in his mouth

I put the hit out!

Yo! The smoothest killer^✦ since Bugsy,^✦ bitches love me

In Queens where my drugs be, I wear Guess jeans and rugbies

Yo, my people from Medina,^✦ they will see ya when you re-up

Bring your heater,^✦ all your cream go between^✦ us

Real shit! My Desert Eagle got a ill grip

I chill wit' niggas^✦ that hit Dominican spots and steal bricks

My red beam made a dread scream and sprayed a Fed team

Corleone be turnin'^✦ niggas^✦ to fiends

Yukons and ninja^✦ black Lexus^✦

'Mega^✦ — the pretty^✦ boy with Mafia^✦ connections^✦

It's The Firm, nigga,^✦ set it!

[Verse 3: Nas]

Yo, my mind is seein' through your design like Blind Fury^✦

I shine jewelry, sippin'^✦ on crushed grapes,^✦ we lust papes^✦

And push cakes^✦ inside^✦ the casket^✦ at Just' wake

It's sickenin', he just finished biddin'^✦ upstate

And now the projects is talkin'^✦ that "Somebody gotta^✦ die" shit

It's logic, as long as it's nobody^✦ that's in my clique

My man Smoke know how to expand^✦ coke in Mr. Coffee

Feds cost me two mill' to get the system^✦ off me

Life's^✦ a bitch, but God forbid the bitch divorce me

I'll be flooded with ice so hellfire can't scorch me

Cuban^✦ cigars,^✦ meetin'^✦ Foxy^✦ at Demars,^✦ movin'^✦ cars

Your top papi^✦ Señor Escobar^✦

[Verse 4: Foxy Brown]

In the black Camaro^✦

Firm deep, all my niggas^✦ hail the blackest sparrow

Wallabees be the apparel through the darkest tunnel^✦

I got visions^✦ of multi^✦ millions^✦ in the biggest bundle

In a Lex pushed^✦ by my nigga^✦ Jungle

E-Moneybags got Moët Chandon, bundle of 62

They ain't got a clue what we about^✦ to do

My whole team, we shittin' hard like Czar

Sosa,^✦ Foxy^✦ Brown, Cormega and Escobar^✦

I keep a phat marquise piece, laced^✦ in all the illest snake skin

Armani^✦ sweaters, Carolina Herrera

Be The Firm, baby!^✦ From BK to the 'Bridge

My nigga^✦ Wiz, Operation Firm Biz, so what the deal is?

I keep a phat jewel,^✦ sippin'^✦ Cristy^✦

Sittin'^✦ on top of fifty^✦ grand in the Nautica Van, uh!

We stay incogni' like all them thug niggas^✦ in Marcy^✦

The Gods — they praise Allah with visions^✦ of Gandhi^✦

Bet it on, my whole crew is Don Juan

On Cayman^✦ Island^✦ with a case of Cristal

And Baba^✦ Shallah spoke, nigga^✦ with them Cubans^✦ that snort coke

Raw though, an ounce mixed^✦ with leak, that's pure though

Flippin' the bigger^✦ picture, the bigger^✦ nigga^✦ with the cheddar

Was mad dripper, he had a fuckin'^✦ villa^✦ in Manilla

We gotta^✦ flee to Panama^✦

But wait — it's half-and-half, ki's is one and two-fifth, so how we flip?

Thirty-two grams raw, chop it in half, get sixteen,^✦ double it, times^✦ three

We got forty-eight, which mean a whole lot of cream

Divide^✦ the profit^✦ by four, subtract it by eight, we back to sixteen^✦

Now add the other^✦ two that Mega^✦ bringin' through

So let's see, if we flip this other^✦ ki, then that's more for me

Mad coke and mad leak plus a five hundred, cut in half is two-fifty

Now triple that — times^✦ three, we got three quarters of another ki

[Outro: Foxy Brown]

The Firm, baby,^✦ Vol. 1, uh!

Technical Breakdown

8.6

Multisyllabic Rhymes9.5

Complexity of rhyme schemes (data-driven)

Internal Rhymes9.5

Rhymes within a line (data-driven)

Wordplay / Double Entendres7.5

Clever language, metaphors, punchlines

Cadence / Rhythm8.5

Flow variation and timing (data-driven)

Vocabulary Complexity8.0

Range and depth of words used (data-driven)

Delivery / Breath Control8.5

Performance and control

Computed Score8.55

Production

— Dave Atkinson, Trackmasters

Be the first to rate the production

Critic Analysis

RAPLEDGER BAROMETER™

Nas exhibits a mastery of rhythmic economy and internal rhyme density that sets a gold standard for 1996 cinematic storytelling, effectively utilizing multi-syllabic setups to obscure his punchline delivery.

9.5

Multisyllabic

9.5

Internal Rhymes

8.5

Cadence / Flow

Vocabulary

7.5

Wordplay

8.5

Delivery

Internal multi-syllabic cascadingPhonetic mirroringCinematic narrative pacingSlant rhyme integration

Rhyme Architecture: Nas utilizes a highly sophisticated AABB rhyme scheme bolstered by dense internal multisyllabic clusters, specifically leveraging 'eye-ry' vowel sounds throughout the opening bars to establish a consistent percussive frequency.

Verified Doubles & Entendres

"seein' through your design like Blind Fury"

① A reference to the 1989 film starring Rutger Hauer about a blind swordsman with heightened senses.② A double entendre on having peripheral vision and high perception; he is 'blind' (lacking insight) to no one, and he is a 'fury' (a destructive force).

"push cakes inside the casket at Just' wake"

① Distributing illicit drugs (cakes) at a funeral.② The literal act of paying respects while maintaining business operations in a high-stakes, morbid environment.

"we lust papes"

① A slang reference to craving money (paper).② A phonetic play on the 'papal' or religious imagery of the 'crushed grapes' (communion wine), linking the pursuit of wealth to a secular religion.

Superior rhythmic pocket placement

High density of internal rhymes per bar

Coherent thematic narrative arc

Commanding vocal presence

Relies on established tropes of the era (mafia rap)

Occasional reliance on violent imagery over intricate metaphor

Affirmative Action

Lyrics & Rhyme Analysis

Technical Breakdown

Production

User Scores