The World Is Yours (Nas song)
| "The World Is Yours" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Nas | ||||
| from the album Illmatic | ||||
| B-side | "The World Is Yours (Tip Mix)" | |||
| Released | May 31, 1994 | |||
| Recorded | 1992 | |||
| Studio | Battery Studios (New York City) | |||
| Length | 4:51 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Pete Rock | |||
| Nas singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music videos | ||||
| "The World Is Yours" on YouTube | ||||
| "The World Is Yours (Tip Mix)" on YouTube | ||||
"The World Is Yours" is a song by American rapper Nas, for his debut album, Illmatic (1994). The song was released in May 1994, by Columbia Records and is written by Nas and Pete Rock. It is considered by music critics as one of the greatest hip-hop songs ever recorded; About.com ranked it seventh. The single reached number 13 on the US Billboard Hot Rap Singles chart and is produced by Pete Rock. It samples Ahmad Jamal's "I Love Music" and Rock also sings the chorus.
The song pays homage to the film Scarface. The song also references drug dealer/crime boss Howard "Pappy" Mason, and it mentions the unknown serial killer of the Texarkana Moonlight Murders.
A remix of the song was produced by Q-Tip featuring similar but new lyrics; both it and the original were released by Columbia Records as singles, and promoted with music videos.
Sprite put the title of this song on its cans and bottles in summer 2015 in part of their "Obey Your Verse" summer campaign putting rap lyrics on their cans. On January 28, 2019, the single was certified Gold by the RIAA.