"Represent" is the ninth song on Nas' debut album Illmatic. It is produced by DJ Premier who samples Lee Irwin's "Thief of Baghdad" for the song's beat.[1][2]

The topic of this article may not meet Wikipedia's notability guideline for music. (September 2017)

Nas dedicates the song to a long list of people including future hip hop artist Cormega. RapReviews describes "Represent" as a "certified banger."[3]

Composition

The song's minimalistic beat, sampled from Lee Irwin's "Thief of Baghdad", consists of an electric piano sample and bells. Nas raps three verses and performs a spoken dedication to his friends at the track's end, but does not contribute to the chorus. Nas' verses deal with his life in the streets and his criminal ties. One specific lyric was "pulling the Tec out the dresser" was criticized by Jay-Z on his diss song "Takeover."

Sampling

Lyrics from "Represent" are sampled in these songs:

• "Rap Game/Crack Game"[4] by Jay-Z
• "Criminal" by Scientifik
• "Organized Rhyme" by Shabazz the Disciple

References

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