During a recent performance at Madison Square Garden (MSG), Nas got choked up while reflecting on his mother, who passed away from breast cancer back in 2002.
The one-night-only show went down on Friday, and Billboard notes that the occasion marks the first time that Nas headlined a show at MSG.
During this noteworthy point in his career, Nas was sure to pay tribute to his mother as well, as she supported her family by working at a post office that was coincidentally “across the street” from the venue.
Towards the end of his “One Mic” performance, the NYC-bred rapper took a moment to speak on how much he loves his mother. He soon became choked up and admitted that he was getting “emotional in this s**t.” However, he proceeded to clarify that he’s “still a real n***a” before happily proclaiming, “Hey, Ma, we did it!”
“And she’s here with me tonight! I love you, Mom! Got emotional in this s**t! Don’t get it f***ed up, I’m still a real n***a! Aye, Ma, we did it! Every project n***a, we made it!”
Following his shoutout, Nas proceeded to carry on with his performance, and some attendees spoke on how touching the moment was on social media.
Eventually, video of the moment in question began to circulate online as well, which you can view down below.
In addition to the heartfelt commentary on his late mother, another noteworthy part of Nas’ MSG performance was when he brought out AZ to perform “Life’s A B***h” for the fans.
Check out some people’s reactions down below.
It was also pointed out that AZ wasn’t the only musical guest, as Mary J. Blige, Slick Rick, and Hit-Boy made appearances alongside Nas as well.
Shoutout to Nas for lovingly paying tribute to his late mother during his groundbreaking Madison Square Garden gig.