With low-key, sparse sounds and observational lyrics about urban life, the songs are largely autobiographical and nostalgic, departing from the thug persona of Nas' previous records.

[2] Both events revitalized his image in hip hop music at the time, following a string of commercially successful but critically subpar albums.

[9] Production was handled by The Alchemist, L.E.S., Poke and Tone, Precision, Rockwilder, Al West, Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie, and Hill, Inc.

The album was packaged with a booklet featuring artwork by Chris "C-Money" Feldman and photography by Kareem Black, along with liner notes displaying the slogan "No cameos.

[14] John Bush of AllMusic said the songs "have more in common with his early recordings; there's more of a back-in-the-day, wasn't-it-all-so-simple-then sound to 'Doo Rags' and 'Poppa Was a Playa,' two tracks that definitely wouldn't have fit on the raging Stillmatic.

"[16] According to Robert Christgau, The Lost Tapes abandons the thug persona of Nas' previous work in favor of more sensitive, nostalgic, and autobiographical lyrics.

[17] Slate magazine's David Samuels interpreted "a message that begins with a rejection of the materialism of his ... rival Jay-Z" and "the home truth about how most kids in the projects feel about the real-life gangstas who live in their neighborhoods", citing "No Idea's Original" as an example.

[5] Richard Hazell from HipHopDX describes the song as "a piano propelled painting of time and space as seen through the third eye of Nas, which can easily be envisioned by any New York City dweller.

"[21] On "My Way", he meditates over his rise out of poverty to the "life of a rich thug",[21] recalls the death of his childhood friend Ill Will, and concedes that he "still feels broke with millions in the bank.

"[16] In "Purple"'s narrative, Nas lights up a blunt and expresses his thoughts, including criticism of hoodlums and their effect on their neighborhoods: "The 'hood love you, but behind your back they pray for the day / A bullet hit your heart and ambulance take you away / That ain't love it's hate / Think of all the mothers at wakes / Whose sons you've killed and you ain't got a cut on your face?

The skin on our backs / We rent and we ask for reparations, then they hit us with tax"), and dependency ("I'm a Columbia record slave / So get paid / Control your own destiny, you are a genius / Don't let it happen to you like it did to me, I was a black zombie").

[28] Its socially conscious lyrics deride media stereotypes of African Americans, inequality in the educational system, and black-on-black violence.

[11] The release received little marketing, with hip hop journalist Rob Markman noting no promotional music videos were produced and Nas' absence from the cover.

[37] On October 2, 2002, The Lost Tapes was reported to have sold more than 70,000 copies in its first week of release, giving it a chart debut of number 10 on the Billboard 200.

[41] Reviewing for Entertainment Weekly in September 2002, Craig Seymour said Nas' "gritty, yet hopeful, reflections make Lost Tapes a real find.

"[8] Rolling Stone critic Jon Caramanica hailed it as "the real Stillmatic", writing that it "displays Nas' gifts for tightly stitched narrative and stunningly precise detail.

Club, Nathan Rabin deemed it a masterpiece whose assorted tracks cohere as well as any of Nas' official studio albums while reaffirming his reputation as "rap music's poet laureate of urban despair".

[49] A follow-up compilation, The Lost Tapes II, was originally intended to be released on December 16, 2003, and include unreleased recordings, remixes, and freestyle tracks.

[45] However, its release was further delayed by Def Jam, whom Nas accused of mishandling the project and its budget in a personal e-mail sent to label executives.

[54] Reports of the project's delay incited fans to create an online petition in December asking for Def Jam to release the album.

[55] After losing time to the project's delay, Nas began recording for a new studio album and put plans for The Lost Tapes 2 on hold.