Irv Gotti says that Jay-Z originally intended to have Nas featured on his Reasonable Doubt track, “Can I Live,” but the Queensbridge rapper never showed up to the studio session. The former Def Jam executive recalled the incident during a recent appearance on Drink Champs with N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN.
“We was waiting for Nas to get on ‘Can I Live,’” Gotti said. “N***a, no one knows [this] — yeah, they know now. We was waiting for Nas to do the second verse! … He didn’t show. That’s the end of the story!”
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When asked whether he was certain that it was “Can I Live” and not “Dead Presidents,” Gotti confirmed, “I’m sure, n***a. I was there, I was in the studio.”
Dame Dash has previously said that it was “Bring It On,” on which Nas was supposed to be featured.
While the collaboration didn’t come to fruition, the two rappers later engaged in one of the most infamous New York rap beefs in hip hop history. In the 2000s, both rappers released several diss songs aimed at each other including “Supa Ugly,” “Takeover,” and “Ether.”
The two eventually made amends on the I Declare War Tour in 2005 and have worked together numerous times in the years since.
Check out Gotti’s appearance on Drink Champs below.
[Via]