Over the course of four years Nate’s widow (Nicole Ward-smith) tried to get the masters to Nate’s last recorded songs to release them to the world. After getting nowhere. She finally was able to get in contact with Documentalz (Doc Martin), a producer from Buffalo with success in the entertainment industry with very close ties to Nate. Doc took over and was able to get the album done with some remixed songs and guest appearances. Releasing the album on all streaming platforms allowed for easier distribution in time to put the album out on what would have been Nate’s 50th birthday, hence the name of the album “The 40 Year Old Version.”