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Nas has had a great year so far, and he’s already about to come into 2014 with a bang.

Gearing up for the 20th anniversary of his debut classic album Illmatic, the veteran rapper recently reflected on his long and successful career with the Huffington Post.

He sat down with the site to talk about what’s going to happen during the 20th anniversary, making songs with Mariah Carey, working with Jay-Z, and his clothing line HSTRY.

On plans to commemorate Illmatic, he says:

We’re putting together a concert. And I think we’re going to do something with the album and repackage it with special stuff. I think that’s in the works.

On recording the track“Sinatra In The Sands,” featuring Justin Timberlake and Jay Z:

Excitement… Excitement to work and be in the place that we’re all are at, musically. Those are the guys who lasted the test of time, and those guys are at the top of their game. They’re just company to be in. So that’s the whole vibe of that. And of course the title says it all.

When asked “Lyrically, where are you taking fans on the track?,” Nas says:

More like from a musician’s stand point, someone who’ve been around. Because Sinatra has been around and he has a long, long standing with the stage and the audience for years. And he evolved. His talent got better just like wine. And I think that’s something a lot of people want to achieve. So that’s what this song is really about. Striving to be the best you, like Sinatra had become.

On recent photos of him working with Mariah Carey, the Queens native responded:

That’s on her album, and it’s a banger! [Yassssss!] I was excited to get back in the studio with her. She’s one of the greatest voices of our generation. She’s on another level. Just working with an artist that big really shows me how much further I can go. I’ve been inspired just sitting there talking to her. She’s very smart and extremely talented. And I’m just happy to work with her again.

And it’s bigger than music. The Life Is Good rapper is putting his hands in the fashion world. On how much input he’s putting into his new line, HSTRY he says:

Total input on everything. From picking out fabric to the designs. It’s a collaborative effort between me and Grungy Gentleman. So what you’ve been seeing from HSTRY is not 100 percent HSTRY. It’s half HSTRY, half Grungy Gentleman. That was the way we launched it on that level. But the Spring collection is the next thing. We’re going to have some cool pieces this Winter. But next Spring is where my head is at, which will be 100 percent HSTRY.

As for where he envisions his style in the fashion industry?

Just a great look, comfort, and quality. My thing spans from my 90s wear, where it’s all military, it’s all fatigue-style stuff, but just make it higher end and current. And also, the athletic styles of that time. Without revealing all my secrets, I have a wide range of ideas for HSTRY. It’s just unstoppable with all the directions I have for this thing. I’m excited to get that off the ground, and we’re just starting. It looks like 2014 is going to be another big year for me.

We can’t wait to see what Nas has planned for the next year.

Check out the full interview here.

SOURCE: HuffPost | PHOTO CREDIT: Instagram