Nas has shared an update on his much-anticipated joint album with DJ Premier, describing the collaboration as something “a long time coming” for both him and the legendary producer.

In a recent conversation with Rolling Stone, the Queensbridge rapper revealed that the project will feature several older tracks that he and DJ Premier initially worked on when they first envisioned the album years ago.

“I’m going to say at least two of those ideas happened on this album,” he said. “We didn’t get a chance to do ’em when we were talking about ’em, but we finally got a chance to put those recordings together this year.”

While Nas stopped short of providing a specific release date, he made it clear he was thrilled for fans to experience the album. “I can’t wait for people to finally hear it. I don’t know about anybody else, but for me and him, it was personally a long time coming for us to do it.”

The currently untitled album, which has already unveiled its first single, “Define My Name,” is part of Mass Appeal Records’ year-long “Legend Has It…” series. The initiative highlights new music from some of New York hip-hop’s most iconic figures.

“It’s 1995 all over again,” Nas told Rolling Stone of the star-studded series. “Sometimes I feel like 2025 has that feeling. It’s not going backwards, [it’s] going forward, though. It’s that feeling of urgency, that vibration, the celebration of life and these songs and these albums, what they meant 30 years ago.”

He continued, “It’s a celebration of a great impact, a standard that they set that we could never forget because it keeps us aiming higher. This series is to encourage [and] inspire hip-hop and remind us all [of] the pureness of hip-hop. I hope that we all can do this together.”