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In the early 1990s, New York was the hip-hop hub, and Large Professor was one of its most promising producers. He was known for his gritty and horn-saturated sound, which resulted in him being mentored by Main Source, who, in turn, was mentoring a young Nas when he wrote what would become ‘Halftime’.

The beat was forged in his apartment using a blend of drum loops and looping brass riffs. It was pure boom-bap, the type of sound that reverberated through Queens park jams and tape decks. Yet before Nas could come in there and get his hands on it, the instrumental was sampled by another emcee entirely, Busta Rhymes.

At the time, Busta was still a member of Leaders of the New School, and his animated style was turning heads throughout Brooklyn. Professor Large created the Halftime beat in front of him, and for a moment, it seemed like the sound of New York rap could change drastically. Busta later said that he was going to give it to me at the time. He loved it, he tried to write to it, but ran into a wall. The words would not come. For once, the voicebox of the loudest man in the room was closed. It was his first encounter with writer’s block that cost him one of the best beats of his time.

Years later, Busta described that moment with brutal honesty. “I didn’t know what to do with it… I was in love with the shit out of the beat. Then I heard it on Halftime and I was like Goddamn I was a stupid ass for not touching this beat”. To hear Nas ride over the same track that used to be in his hands was eye-opening. It hurt, but it also lit a fire under him. A reminder that the beat he let go became a personal story of the fact that inspiration waits for no one. In hip-hop hesitation is defeat.

Where Busta stammered, Nas worked with precision. Brought to Large Professor by MC Serch, the twenty-year-old Queensbridge poet entered the studio calm and sure of himself. “Yo, I’m good”, he said, and then he rattled off the whole verse on a single take. Silence prevailed, followed by an outburst. ‘Halftime’ was the first track recorded for Illmatic, an apt single that introduced Nas as the next great New York narrator. It began with a statement, “Because it’s halftime”, and with that the crown of the city turned his way.

When ‘Halftime’ hit the Zebrahead soundtrack in 1992, it was more than a first step. It was a new standard of lyricism and production, a sign that the underground was about to sweep the mainstream aside. The song’s popularity cemented Nas’ Columbia deal and paved the way for Illmatic to change hip-hop in 1994. For Busta Rhymes, it was a sweet and sad lesson. He ended up creating a career out of anthems, but he never forgot that beat that trembled between his fingers.

The irony of ‘Halftime’ is that it was the song that became both a classic Nas record and a classic moment for Busta. Despite his legendary status in the industry, one man’s reluctance became another man’s masterpiece. In the story of this beat, there are no bad guys. Only time, intuition and fate.