A3C Hip Hop Festival Blog

Nas: Time is Illmatic Documentary to be screened at 2014 A3C Festival

Written by Mike Walbert | Aug 27

We are excited to announce that we will be screening Nas: Time is Illmatic featuring a Q&A with the documentary directors.

Nas: Time is Illmatic will be screened at the A3C Artists Center (Crowne Plaza). All-Access or VIP pass is required.

"Time Is Illmatic is a feature length documentary film that delves deep into the making of Nas’ 1994 debut album, Illmatic, and the social conditions that influenced its creation.

Twenty years after its release, Illmatic has become a hip-hop benchmark that encapsulates the socio-political outlook, enduring spirit, and collective angst of a generation of young black men searching for their voice in America.

Time is Illmatic tracks the musical legacy of the Jones family, handed down to Nas from his jazz musician father, Olu Dara. It also examines the social conditions and environmental influences that contributed to Nas’ worldview.

Along the way, Time Is Illmatic shows how Nas—with the support of his Queensbridge neighborhood crew, the loyalty of his younger brother Jabari “Jungle” Jones, and sacrifices of his mother, Ann Jones—overcame insurmountable odds to create the greatest work of music from hip-hop’s second golden era."