Light-Years (Nas and DJ Premier album)

Light-Years
Studio album by Nas and DJ Premier
Released	December 12, 2025
Recorded	2006–2025
Studio	Kaufman Astoria Studios (New York City) The Hit Factory (New York City) D&D (New York City)
Genre	Hip-hop
Length	48:21
Label	Mass Appeal
Producer	DJ Premier
Nas chronology
Magic 3 (2023) Light-Years (2025)
DJ Premier chronology
PRhyme 2 (2018) Light-Years (2025)
Legend Has It... chronology
Cabin in the Sky (2025) Light-Years (2025)

Light-Years is a collaborative studio album by American rapper Nas and record producer DJ Premier. It was released on December 12, 2025, by Mass Appeal. It is the seventh and final album in Mass Appeal's Legend Has It… series of albums that were released in 2025. The album features guest appearances from rock band Steve Miller Band and fellow rapper and Nas' former Firm cohort AZ. The album earned positive reviews from critics.

Background

In January 2006, during an interview for Scratch, Nas announced that he would be working with DJ Premier on a collaboration album.^[1]

In 2011, Nas revealed that the album was still in the works.^[2]

On April 19, 2024, a new single entitled "Define My Name" was released by Nas and DJ Premier, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Nas' debut album Illmatic (1994). In the track, they announced that their long-awaited collaborative album was "coming soon", with a press release by Mass Appeal Records stating that it would be released in late 2024.^[3]

On April 16, 2025, Mass Appeal Records announced a series titled Legend Has It..., which features seven albums coming in 2025, from Nas & DJ Premier, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Mobb Deep, De La Soul, Big L, and Slick Rick.^[4][5]

On October 7, 2025, Nas revealed in an interview with Rolling Stone, that he and Premier recorded older songs that date back when the project was announced, which would be included for the album.^[6]

On November 20, 2025, Premier revealed at a Bristol concert with fellow producer The Alchemist that the album would be released on December 12^[7][8] and the album's title was announced on November 25, 2025, via Nas' Instagram.^[9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Clash	8/10[10]
RapReviews.com	7.5/10[11]
Rolling Stone	[12]
Hip Hop Golden Age	8.5/10[13]
HotNewHipHop	[14]

Track listing

Light-Years track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"My Life Is Real"	Nasir Jones Christopher Martin Marco Polo	2:39
2.	"Git Ready"	Jones Martin Leon Huff Kenneth Gamble	2:51
3.	"N.Y. State of Mind Pt. 3"	Jones Martin Billy Joel	3:12
4.	"Welcome to the Underground"	Jones Martin C. Ivory	3:19
5.	"Madman"	Jones Martin	2:24
6.	"Pause Tapes"	Jones Martin	2:37
7.	"Writers"	Jones Martin Polo	4:53
8.	"Sons (Young Kings)"	Jones Martin Polo	3:03
9.	"It's Time" (with Steve Miller Band)	Jones Martin Adam Horovitz Darryl McDaniels Rick Rubin Joseph Simmons Steven Miller	2:28
10.	"Nasty Esco Nasir"	Jones Martin	2:42
11.	"My Story Your Story" (featuring AZ)	Jones Martin Anthony Cruz Polo	3:48
12.	"Bouquet (To the Ladies)"	Jones Martin E. Record	4:28
13.	"Junkie"	Jones Martin P. Callender Lalo Schifrin	3:40
14.	"Shine Together"	Jones Martin Arnie Oliver Werner Schuchner	2:40
15.	"3rd Childhood"	Jones Martin Ivory	3:29
Total length:			48:21

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal.^[15]

• Nas – lead vocals
• DJ Premier – production, mixing, programming
• Zeke Mishanec – engineering (tracks 1–13)
• Nef – engineering (1, 2, 4–10, 12, 15)
• Mark "Exit" Goodchild – engineering (3, 13, 14)
• King of Chill – engineering (14)
• Parks Vallely – engineering (14)
• Tony Dawsey – mastering
• Sam Lazarev – engineering assistance (1, 9)
• Jared Klinghoffer – engineering assistance (1)
• Maximilien Hein – engineering assistance (2, 5)
• Majeston – engineering assistance (2)
• Brendon O'Neill – engineering assistance (3, 4)
• Ulana Hapij – engineering assistance (3)
• Rich Evatt – engineering assistance (6, 15)
• Kevin Cartwright – engineering assistance (7, 13)
• Wilfried Haslauer – engineering assistance (8, 13)
• Evan Dollar – engineering assistance (9)
• Guenole Georgelin – engineering assistance (10)
• Justin Klatzko – engineering assistance (11, 12)
• Grayson Thomas – engineering assistance (12)

Charts

Chart performance for Light-Years

Chart (2025)	Peak position
Australian Hip Hop/R&B Albums (ARIA)[16]	19
Japanese Digital Albums (Oricon)[17]	29
Japanese Download Albums (Billboard Japan)[18]	23
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[19]	33
UK Album Downloads (OCC)[20]	2
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[21]	25
US Billboard 200[22]	47
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[23]	3
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[24]	9

Release history

Light-Years release history

Region	Date	Format	Label	Ref.
Various	December 12, 2025	Cassette CD digital download streaming vinyl	Mass Appeal	[25]

References

1. "DJ Premier: Hope to the Underground". The Morning News. September 11, 2009. Archived from the original on May 14, 2012. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
2. Harper, Rosario (December 13, 2011). "News: Nas & DJ Premier Collabo Album Still In The Works". Sohh.com. Archived from the original on October 20, 2013. Retrieved April 4, 2013.
3. Moore, Sam (April 19, 2024). "Nas & DJ Premier Announce Long-Awaited Joint Album, Drop First Single 'Define My Name'". HipHopDX. Archived from the original on April 24, 2024. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
4. Fisher, Carol (April 16, 2025). "Mass Appeal Announces "Legend Has It" Series Featuring New Albums From Nas, De La Soul & More". Hot New Hip Hop. Archived from the original on April 16, 2025. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
5. "Slick Rick Announces First New Album In 26 Years, Produced With Idris Elba". Stereogum. May 15, 2025. Archived from the original on May 15, 2025. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
6. Gee, Andre (October 7, 2025). "Nas Wants the World to See Hip-Hop Legends as Superheroes". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 7, 2025. Retrieved October 26, 2025.
7. Gee, Andre. "DJ Premier Announces Release Date For His Album With Nas". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 20, 2025.
8. @ObiTriceKenobi (November 20, 2025). "Apparently @REALDJPREMIER confirmed at a Alchemist/Premier show tonight that the Nas/DJ premier album is coming on 12/12" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
9. Strauss, Matthew (November 25, 2025). "Nas and DJ Premier Announce New Album Light-Years". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 25, 2025.
10. Murray, Robin (December 12, 2025). "Nas + DJ Premier – Light-Years | Reviews". Clash. Retrieved December 12, 2025.
11. "Nas x DJ Premier :: Light-Years – RapReviews". RapReviews.com. December 14, 2025. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
12. Reeves, Mosi (December 13, 2025). "Nas and DJ Premier Are Elder Statesmen With Gifts Left to Share". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 14, 2025.
13. "Nas & DJ Premier – Light Years Review". Hip Hop Golden Age. Retrieved December 12, 2025.
14. "Nas & DJ Premier – Light Years Album Review". HotNewHipHop. Retrieved December 25, 2025.
15. "Light-Years / Nas / Credits". Tidal. Retrieved December 12, 2025.
16. "ARIA Top 40 Hip Hop/R&B Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. December 22, 2025. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
17. "Oricon Top 50 Digital Albusm: 2025-12-22" (in Japanese). Oricon. Archived from the original on December 21, 2025. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
18. "Billboard Japan Download Albums – December 17, 2025". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved December 22, 2025.
19. "Swisscharts.com – Nas and DJ Premier – Light-Years". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
20. "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
21. "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
22. "Nas Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2025.
23. "Nas Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2025.
24. "Nas Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 23, 2025.
25. Light-Years release formats:
    • "Nas & DJ Premier - Light-Years - Day Ones Edition - CD". shop.massappeal. Archived from the original on December 7, 2025. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
    • "Nas & DJ Premier - Light-Years - Day Ones Edition - Cassette". shop.massappeal. Archived from the original on December 7, 2025. Retrieved December 7, 2025.
    • "Nas & DJ Premier - Light-Years - Day Ones Edition - 2x Vinyl". shop.massappeal. Archived from the original on December 7, 2025. Retrieved December 7, 2025.