The state of the music industry is confusing from every angle. Making money feels impossible. Streams pay fractions of pennies, and tours don’t last forever unless you’re like The Weeknd, who has been on the road for years now. Artists are stuck trying to figure out brand deals and licensing since no one actually buys albums anymore. This is particularly rough for veterans in the industry like Nas. Frankly, he’s tired of it.In a statement on Instagram, he mused over the current state of culture as a whole. Ultimately, the Queens MC had a sour taste in his mouth about how the industry discards its legends and innovators. It’s a ‘what have you done for me lately’ kind of industry. Even if they give the art and culture their everything, they don’t always get the care they deserve.“For the past year I’ve been watching so much happen in the culture while working on music,” Nas wrote. “I think about how it started, I think about the Mississippi Delta to New Orleans to New York. I think about Robert Johnson at the crossroads, how he changed music, and how we can’t even find his grave.”Nas Addresses The State of Music and Culture While Teasing New Music“Sometimes I look at all artists, creators, and executives the same way. The music game forgets or doesn’t compensate the foundation. Our greats have been stolen from and ripped off of,” the Illmatic legend continued.Consequently, Nas advocated for artists to stop desperately chasing trends in favor of a more communal experience within hip-hop. That way, when the industry leaves people out to dry, artists still have something to rely on. “We can’t keep creating music for the sake of a “trend”. We have to remember the purpose and our contribution and how many things we created. Where’s the love for each other at?” Nas questioned. “We gotta take a stand as one. It’s time for a celebration of the music.”Then, at the end of his manifesto, he stressed the importance of knowing yourself and teased that it’s time to address what that actually means. At the bottom, he added “BLAK MUSIC 2026”.Clearly, this suggests another album could be on the way. What we know for certain is that it won’t include any Hit-Boy production. Back in August 2026, the producer shrugged that he’ll never work with Nas again for reasons that weren’t immediately clear. “We did a lot of great work, but I don’t see us working again,” Hit-Boy told DJ Vlad and Elliott Wilson. “There’s a lot of reasons, you know what I mean? But it’s something I don’t really wanna dig too deep in ’cause it’s pretty deep. Respect to what we did get accomplished in three years.”Photo by Lester Cohen/Getty Images for BMIThe post Nas Slams the Music Industry Over Disrespect, Teases New Music: ‘It’s Time to Address It’ appeared first on VICE.