Fruitful Product Placement: Nas Says Fila on Mixtape; Gets Endorsement Deal
Seated in a quiet corner of New York restaurant the Spotted Pig, Nas is drinking a glass of rose. He’s dressed comfortably in jeans, Velcro-fastened sneakers and a white T-shirt featuring the image of a poster from Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier’s “Thrilla in Manilla” fight. His black Rolls Royce is parked outside and he’s awaiting a few cigars from his driver.
That’s not really relevant to the Fila deal, but I think that the writer essentially captured the Nas that we’ve been exposed to since late 2006. Since Hip Hop is Dead, his numerous collaboration verses and even with The Nigger Tape (on which the Little Homey throws around the word Fila/velour/suit a couple times) we’re listening to a new rapper. Rhymes laced front-to-back by a braggadocio, champagne sipping, expensive painting scoping, grown-paper spending Nasir. Not that speaking on money or expensive things is something new to Nas, or rappers in general, but it’s a step away from where he was focused and it seems to be the zone he’s been in lately.
And although he hasn’t just started mentioning Fila, it seems that being in that paper getting mind-state has only gotten him more paper. Apparently the real Juan Ep, a John Epstein at Fila scooped him up for a deal, after he was spotted shopping at Fila Manhattan:
Rapper Nas has broken his tradition of sidestepping brand partnerships and inked a one-year partnership with athletic apparel company Fila, Billboard can reveal. Fila will offer reciprocal financial support for Nas’ print and TV ad campaign as well as his upcoming tour in support of his untitled album, due July 15 via Def Jam. In return, the MC will wear Fila products and co-create an apparel line that draws from fashions of the late ’80s.
“My best friend Will and I loved Fila,” Nas tells Billboard. “It represented prestige and everything that was cool to us. When Will passed, we buried him in a black Fila sweat suit, so doing a deal with them has a lot of significance for me.”
Also, on why “Be A Nigger Too” isn’t on Untitled:
“I didn’t want to ‘n–ger’ my audience to death,” he says. “So ‘Be a N–ger Too,’ which I recently released a video for, isn’t on the album. It didn’t fit. The entire record deals with the concept, but … I had to pace myself.”
Link: Tough issues go beyond words for rapper Nas [spotted at XXL]
June 30th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Nas and Fila? smarten up NaS
June 30th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
What up Nas?
*daps*
June 30th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
Whatever happen to those horrific shoes he was going to drop
http://www.nahright.com/news/2007/02/13/deadstock/
June 30th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
nas shoulda gone with troop
June 30th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
What…Hurricane Chris wasn’t enough for Fila?
What up Nah *daps and hugs for all*
June 30th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
much thanks to all y’all who gave their input (niet) to my car audio inquiries… I ended up copping the Kenwood KDC-MP438U and Infinity Kappa 62.7i speakers for the rear deck (no poop deck)…
June 30th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
http://gotohelmsman.com/
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
*finally wears new fila shoe from 07 with matching jacket*
Thanks Nas
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
*hugs babydoll*
*reminds her that the Coleman’s got divorced*
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
buying Untitled > buying Filas
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
“Word of Will buried in his Fila suit and heavy chain
I wanna be iced up nigga bury me the same”
Nice move, I would love to see Nas gettin big money…maybe Jay-z told him so.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
Despite Fila being ehh (anybody else remember them Travel Fox joints), I cant ever hate on a nigga for being true to himself. This is much better than another post 30 Queens MC I know doing deals with Sears for bedazzled T shirts.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
lo k Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
*hugs babydoll*
*reminds her that the Coleman’s got divorced*
^Hey lo k…oop-phi and all that! *winks*
June 30th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
lol @ Nas wearing Nikes in the photo… nice one, nation
June 30th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
I didn’t even see a pair of filas in foot locker this weekend…..
June 30th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
# Ghost Writer Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
*finally wears new fila shoe from 07 with matching jacket*
Thanks Nas
^you still lost
June 30th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
the other day i got it on in my dorm, i had Fila slippers on, then i transformed…-cormega
maybe its a queens thing
June 30th, 2008 at 12:38 pm
eskay…HH websites r being shutdown by racists left & right n not a peep frm u?
theres a war goin on outside nobodys safe frm
June 30th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
^ I’ll put hands on you
June 30th, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Busy as fuck at work, just wanted to say that I dont think Nas has been this dope since 1996.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Jay Z, S carter shoes (ughh) and Fila all lost
June 30th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
I think that the writer essentially captured the Nas that we’ve been exposed to since late 2006.
we’re listening to a new rapper.
^^que??
*disassebles and reassembles a casette deck/clock radio*
*blasts Firm Biz till the speakers explode*
June 30th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Busy as fuck at work, just wanted to say that I dont think Nas has been this dope since 1996.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Make that like 2001..Your reaching. Stillmatic and Lost Tapes>
June 30th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
456 Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
# Ghost Writer Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
*finally wears new fila shoe from 07 with matching jacket*
Thanks Nas
^you still lost
^
*brushes off the filas*
whatever man…..
June 30th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Jay Z, S carter shoes (ughh) and Fila all lost
^ Did I lose for owning a pair of S. Dots? The first joints, (red, white, & green) weren’t thaaat bad.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
^ I’ll put hands on you
pause….
que?
June 30th, 2008 at 12:44 pm
>>Jay Z, S carter shoes (ughh) and Fila all lost
^from what i’ve seen Jay rocks Nikes more than those S.Dots.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
Big Homie Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Jay Z, S carter shoes (ughh) and Fila all lost
^ Did I lose for owning a pair of S. Dots? The first joints, (red, white, & green) weren’t thaaat bad.
^No
June 30th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
^ Did I lose for owning a pair of S. Dots? The first joints, (red, white, & green) weren’t thaaat bad.
^^^^^^^^^^
lol, Nah shit is just jokes. S.dots were aight
June 30th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
456 Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
# Ghost Writer Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:30 pm
*finally wears new fila shoe from 07 with matching jacket*
Thanks Nas
^you still lost
^
*brushes off the filas*
whatever man…..
^meaning if you need permission from gnoz-ear to wear clothes you’ve already purchased….you know the rest
June 30th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Not that I did ever buy them though.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
^meaning if you need permission from gnoz-ear to wear clothes you’ve already purchased….you know the rest
^
Never that…..I was just playing……
June 30th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
*runs to the next plantation*
June 30th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
^from what i’ve seen Jay rocks Nikes more than those S.Dots.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Yeah S.dots have pretty much been dead. along with Fila.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
456 mr B-boy himself, how can find Nas endorsing fila as some dope shit.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
From AHH: *dies*
You might have heard about the mess where only 20 people showed up to a Young Buck show. Well that was an exception to the rule. Last Thursday, at Fur Nightclub in Washington D.C., Young Buck made his first performance since the 20-people debacle. In D.C. it was a full house! This time, there was a new issue. The promoters weren’t hospitable, according to my sources. They made Young Buck pay for his own hotel room! Prior to the show, he was allegedly paid half of the money, and was to get the remainder at show time, did he get it? Of course not! I heard Buck didn’t even perform that night. His entourage wasn’t allowed in Fur. The club said that they weren’t dressed properly from what I heard. Buck was the only one that could have on athletic wear. Unless his hype man or DJ paid to get in, Buck would’ve been a one-man band in a foreign land. I’m sure this wouldn’t have gone down like this if he were still affiliated with G-Unit! Ironically, his former homies were also in town promoting their new album T.O.S.
June 30th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
…how can you not find?
June 30th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
Make that like 2001..Your reaching. Stillmatic and Lost Tapes>
^^^
I’d say It Was Written era Nas>>>>>
Lost Tapes came out in ’01 but the material was from like ’98. And Stillmatic is overrated (What Goes Around is one of Nas’ greatest songs ever, but still…)
June 30th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
… a great, forgotten R&B gem …
youtube.com/watch?v=wG8oMmTjiyI
June 30th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
Ice-T on Family Feud….
Al Roker: name something that’s slippery and hard to hold on to?
Ice-T: dick
^^^^^
smh
June 30th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
SOHH IS SNITCHING!!!!!!!
THEY CANT TAKE THIS BACK…
LOOK OUT FOR SOHH IS SNITCHES.COM !!!
“We have taken down the server to patch the security breach and put in protections for future attacks. Also, as this is an international issue, it is being addressed by The FBI and the Strategic Alliance Cyber Crime Working Group.
Report Internet crimes here: https://complaint.ic3.gov/”
(c) SOHH.com
U KNOW HOW MANY RAPPERS THEY DONE CALLED SNITCHES..NOW THEY SNITCH!!!
June 30th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
# landLORD Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
… a great, forgotten R&B gem …
youtube.com/watch?v=wG8oMmTjiyI
^ yes it is
June 30th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
^ Did I lose for owning a pair of S. Dots?
—–
BIG TIME!!! (c) mexican dude on training day
June 30th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
Why would AHH post something overflowing w hearsay and insinuations…
Im glad Nahright is above all that….
*goes back to reading Ross/F.Brown post*
June 30th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
*slow dances with GreenEyes to Olu classic*
… OWWWWWW ….
June 30th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
I wonder if nas ate for free since the spotting pig is own by jay-z.
June 30th, 2008 at 1:03 pm
I was just listening to the nastrodamis cd. that cd was not bad at all… actually it was pretty dam good. you really didnt have to skip a track til like track 11 or twelve
gold bath tubs makin love to my queen
get my back rubbed, chardonnay, rollin up green
statues, marbal floors, rare painting on my walls
my lifestyle is like a forbes magizine
closets… full of rockets and street machines
June 30th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
anyone copping anything purely based on some assshole celebrity wearing it or endorsing loses a little.
its one thing to genuinely like a pair of shoes, jeans, car, etc.. its another to actually think skin tight jeans, florescent shirts and glitter and fly.
June 30th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
# Plug Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
^ Did I lose for owning a pair of S. Dots?
—–
BIG TIME!!! (c) mexican dude on training day
*gets dragged to the bathroom by the vatos*
June 30th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
Fila Apperal>>>> Fila Kicks
The jackets and polo fleeces are clean….
June 30th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
*finally wears new fila shoe from 07 with matching jacket*
Thanks Nas
^^^^^^^^^^^
lol
June 30th, 2008 at 1:36 pm
# b-ease Says:
June 30th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
“…And Stillmatic is overrated…”
^^^^^
: /