Source: Vibe.com

Nas’ private life has been fodder for gossip blogs since he and Kelis began their messy divorce proceedings in 2009. The rapper, who is notoriously private, said it was that unwanted publicity that made him decide to talk about the ordeal on his new album, “Life Is Good.”

The album was released yesterday and, in addition to posing on the cover with the wedding dress his ex-wife left behind, he included songs about her and his daughter Destiny from a previous relationship. During his promotional tour yesterday, he talked to VH1 about why he decided to talk about his private life on the album, what he learned from the marriage, infidelity and what he would do differently next time around.

As reported by NecoleBitchie:

On why he wrote “Bye Baby” and used Kelis’ wedding dress on his album cover:
I just wanted to do things that really have meaning, that have impact. And it just so happens, my life had been so public in the last couple of years that I felt that if everyone else wanted to tell my story and it wasn’t an accurate story, ‘Why not me tell the real story?’ And I wanted the album to show reality, love, pain, heartbreak, happiness, joy. All of the emotions of life. And there’s nothing more emotional that I could think of that’s been so recent in my life other than my divorce. In my VH1 thing (Behind the Music)…I told that story about the dress. And it just felt like the right thing to do for closure, for me.

On whether or not using Kelis’ dress on the album cover gave him closure:
I don’t know man. Certain things don’t go away so easily. The album cover made it fresh again to me in my mind, a little bit. I had to rethink things and stuff but its all good.

On the biggest lesson he learned from his divorce and what he’d do differently next time:
The biggest lesson I learned is respect…trust…no infidelity. I at some point got pissed off during the relationship and strayed. And I wouldn’t do that again. I would be all good.

On whether or not he told Kelis that he’d do things differently:
Yea. I told her. I told her that. I apologized. She apologized and we just move on. We live and we move on.

I would hope that people learn not to cheat before marriage, but it’s never too late to learn a lesson and Nas seems like he’s really grown from the experience. It’s great to hear him being so open and honest about the entire thing. Kelis hasn’t said much publicly about the album, but she is coming out with an album of her own soon and we’ll likely hear her side then.

What did you think of this interview? Have you heard Nas’ album?

Follow Alissa on Twitter @AlissaInPink 

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billboard.com

Despite a drama-filled divorce from Kelis, Nas is claiming that life is really good – so much so that the cover art for his new album “Life Is Good” depicts him sitting down in contemplation mode with a green dress draped over his lap. The art is definitely heavy and one ripe for interpretation. Is he trying to say that although the experience of marriage was great, he’s liberated by the the fact that the woman who wore the green dress is gone? In a way, the art (without the title) can also seem somber. Is it that life isn’t good in the aftermath of heartbreak? Could it be that he’s communicating disillusionment with the concept of love and marriage? In his recent “Behind The Music,” Nas did state that when Kelis vacated their home together, all she left was her green wedding dress. In another interview with MTV, Nas only talked vaguely about the album: ”It’s been a long time; it’s been years since I released a solo studio album, so this record is everything,” he said. “This is everything that I’ve got to say – I guess you’ve got to live a little and you put that in your music, so it’s coming from my life.”

However the album art is dissected, one thing’s for sure: the mother of his son Knight is present and heavy on his mind. We’ll see what he’s talking about come July 17th when the album drops.

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