Nas and DJ Premier are about to drop a time machine with Welcome to the Underground, the gritty opener from their long-brewing collab album Light-Years, hitting December 12 via Mass Appeal Records, and it’s already feeling like that raw ’94 spark we thought was gone for good.
This track kicks off the project like a back-alley invitation, pulling you deep into Nas’s world of street philosophy and shadowed corners. Over Premier’s signature dusty loops—think chopped jazz horns and those crisp, head-nodding drums that defined Illmatic—Nas weaves bars about the hidden grind beneath the glamour, touching on fake kings, real scars, and the code that keeps Queens standing. It’s classic boom-bap at heart: no flashy drops, just that dense, multi-syllable flow that makes every line hit like a memory you didn’t know you needed. Themes lean into legacy and survival, nodding to the underground’s pull—the spots where dreams get forged or buried—while hinting at the album’s bigger arc of reflection and rebirth. No features here; it’s pure duo chemistry, raw and unfiltered, like eavesdropping on two old heads plotting the next chapter.
The hype’s been simmering for nearly two decades, ever since Nas first teased this in a 2006 Scratch interview, but 2024’s “Define My Name” single lit the fuse for real, tying back to Illmatic’s 30th. Light-Years caps Mass Appeal’s Legend Has It… series—after drops from Ghostface, Raekwon, and the crew—with a 15-track lineup that mixes fresh cuts and vaulted gems from their early sessions. Highlights roll out like “NY State of Mind Pt. 3,” “3rd Childhood,” and a rare AZ link-up on “My Story Your Story.” Nas posted the full tracklist on Instagram last night with a cryptic “5.88 trillion miles” caption, and Premier’s been hyping it live on tour, yelling drop dates from the stage. Fans can pre-save on Spotify for the whole ride and instant alerts when it lands.
For Nas, this lands right in his golden hour. Fresh off Magic 3’s chart run and that King of New York flex, he’s circling back to the producer who helped crown him, evolving from raw storyteller to elder statesman without losing the edge. Premier’s been on a tear too, lacing beats for Griselda and Ransom, but linking with Nas feels like closing a loop—proving the blueprint still bangs in 2025, no cosigns needed.
Dive into the Welcome to the Underground lyrics below and unpack its raw narrative. Don’t miss other Light-Years tracks for more of Nas and DJ Premier’s timeless grit.
| Lead Vocals | Nas & DJ Premier |
| Songwriter | Nas & DJ Premier |
| Music Producer | DJ Premier |
| Label | Mass Appeal Records |
| Release Date | December 12, 2025 |
| Song Language | English |
| Copyright © | Mass Appeal Records |
Lyrics of Welcome to the Underground by Nas & DJ Premier
[Intro: Ralph Mcdaniels & Nas]
Okay, We Gotta Go Deep-Deep-Deep, to the Underground
Take Every Breath Out of My Body if I Don’t Stay Real
for Life, Yeah, Turn It Up, Turn It Up, Yeah
Welcome to the Underground, That Basement Life
Way Underneath the Earth, Dig Up Dirt, Termites and Baby Mice, Scatterin’
Below the Surface, We Deep in the Soil, We Jackhammerin’
to the Core of It All, Avoidin’ the Laws
Outside the Corner Stores With the Raw, Take Me Back Again
Before Ice Around Me, on Stage Performin’ While They Fightin’ Around Me
Later Somebody Gun Pop, the Good Old Days, We From the Streets
Makin’ Plays, Either You Grind or You Incomplete
Open the Year, ’86 [?]
for the Time [?] Confined to Four Walls, and Now We Meet
How ‘Bout It for the Real, Now I Could Fly to Saudi
Do a Deal, Comin’ Back, Whole Fam Showered in Souvenirs
if My Kids Are Nepo Babies, It Was Destined
and They Blessed, Let ‘Em Go Crazy
Healin’ Is Important, Live It if You Talk and Children Get the Short End of the Stick
Let’s Make Better Choices, and Everything [?]
There’s a Price Just to Breathe, Everything Gets Taxed, Nothing in Life’s Free
So Ain’t Nobody Stealin’ My Peace, I’m Still a Beast
if I Gotta Put a Peace, It’s Somebody Grillin’ Release
Figure to Speech, Picture Me a Civilian Packin’ Heat
Back in the Days, Waves, Immature Naivate
by the Tender Age of Twelve Around Some Men Who May
Made It Through Situations That Was Inhumane
Eatin’ Twelve Course Dinners, Look How the Menu Changed
but the Men Ain’t Changed, Yeah, Welcome to the Underground
Comin’ Straight From the Underground
Comin’ Straight From the Underground [Verse 2: Nas]
a Twenty-Four Karat Gold Award Addict, Manic
Way Beyond Boss Status, I Need a Room With the Walls Padded About Mine
Cops Used to Pat Us Down, Old Straps We Got Passed Down
From Old Legends Let Us Hold They Weapons
They Saw in Us the Coldest, That Was in They Essence
Hear the Street Confessions, if You Kill a Legend Now You a Legend
the One Who Take Out a Legend, He Next to Be a Legend, Allegedly (Yeah)
Enamored, Feel It, I Channel Through the Annals of the Life of Ali
My Spirit Animal, Feel His Ice Grill Ya Camera Crew
Epitomize, Personify an Open Letter to Multiple Golden Eras That Ended
I Go Forever, Official Tissue, Life Changin’ Masterpiece Theater
F**k Your Candy-A*s [?]
I Open Fire Like [?] Behind Sand Bags, With My Comrades
Onslaught, Turn You Corny Niggas to Cornstarch
I Lead and You Just Go With It, the One Who Clash With the Whole System
Since I Entered the Scene, I Just Roll Different
Now They Code Switching, They Soul Missing
a Catholic Priest Appears in Your Mirror
Y’all Awaited Preem and Nas Like It’s Detox
Forget the Drum Machine When Preem Could Just Do the Beatbox
or Bang on the Top of a Table, [?]
and I Can Freestyle, They Can’t See Nas
Welcome to the Underground
[Chorus: Ice Cube]
Comin’ Straight From the Underground
Comin’ Straight From the Underground
