The Jay-Z vs. Nas beef was a gladiatorial battle between two rap titans. For almost a decade, two of rap's most decorated emcees went at each other's throat.
At one point, they even took a poll about the beef, with 58% of listeners saying they preferred “Ether” to “Supa Ugly”. The consensus seemed to point to Nas as the winner. “Ether” has since become an emblematic diss track, with rappers reinterpreting it for their beef purposes.
Jay Z and Nas' feud was sparked over a Memphis Bleek lyric in 2000's 'My Mind Right', causing the rapper to respond to both Bleek and Jay Z on future mixtape tracks. The feud escalated further when Jay Z called Nas "lame" on 2001's 'The Takeover', prompting Nas to take aim at Jay on 'Ether'. The beef continued in this wild manner until they ended it publicly at the 'I Declare War' concert in Philadelphia in 2005.