Albums, Ghostface Killah

The Blue & Cream Is Finally Coming? Supreme Clientele 2 release date set

It seems it took Nas to drag Ghostface across the finish line and set us up with a release date for Supreme Clientele 2: Blue & Cream: June 19th. An album that was announced over a decade ago, and which history I previously covered here. Honestly, I am a bit stunned that it is actually coming.

The album is set to be part of the Legend Has It… album series by Mass Appeal. A series which includes releases by his co-host Raekwon, Slick Rick, Mobb Deep & Big L. Nas really has been doing his thing with Mass Appeal, and it might just be the right home for Ghostface and his Blue & Cream. Last year we already saw the first collaboration between Ghost and the label with the release of Set The Tone (Guns & Roses). In my opinion a flawed album that was okay at best. Curiously enough that album was kicked off with the same 6 minutes track which was previously featured on his exclusive Stem Player EP. [mfn]The Stem Player page seems to be offline as of writing, and I have heard nothing about that EP since, nor did it surface. Which begs the question if it was ever actually released. [/mfn] This fact makes one wonder if more tracks from that venture ended up on this project.

What was on point for Set The Tone, was the marketing. Mass Appeal knows how to do this, and had a release party set up, a video for Pair of Hammers with Meth with proper production. And some special stuff on their website for sale. (Personally, I forgot about the album just as quick as it was announced.) Shit, just now I even discovered there is a video for Scar Tissue with Nas.

So what can we expect? It has been said that there are tracks that are over 10 years old. That would mean that this really could be a real musical odyssey of what Ghost has been doing in the last 25 years. Couple years ago it was mentioned that Kanye West & Mike Dean were executive producing the album. This was mentioned alongside the name Producer Plug Uni (whom produced 6 Minutes on Set The Tone and has a credit on Shots) were supposed to be exec producing. As it is a sequel I would also look back at Supreme Clientele itself. This album was loaded with tracks which were used by other people. From G-Dini using the Bastards beat, to Stay True being called Deck’s Beat on the Canadian version of the album.1The Canadian version of Supreme Clientele is infamous for having a different sequencing and some huge differences. First being the inclusion of the track In The Rain (Wise), second is the Ghost Deini using the Bastards beat, third is having his Impossible verse on there. If the original is any indication, we might be hearing some beats that were used elsewhere before., if only the Wu was as tight as they were back in the day.

Now I would be a miss if I did not mention Lord Superb.2I have to make a quick note here that Lord Superb is not without his problems. He was in jail for a while, convicted twice of sexual abuse charges involving a minor. Originally he was part of the American Cream Team with Raekwon, but showed up on Ghostface his sophomore too, as well as on Bulletproof Wallets. He died in 2014 at the age of 41. His presence on Supreme Clientele is undeniable. Whether it be his verses or his appearance as Woodrow. Matter of fact, it was so undeniable that in the early 2000s Superb actually claimed that he was responsible for a lot of Supreme Clientele, in writing and style.3This all started with the 2004 mixtape Bynoe (Of Tha Riot Squad) – Pain & Muzik 3 (Hosted By DJ Semi) which included a prison phone interview with him. Ever since there have been some discussions about this, and even 50 Cent & Tony Yayo referenced it. I for one would not be surprised if Superb was indeed helping Ghost out a lot during this period. Also for the simple fact that in later years it became more obvious that Ghost was being helped out by Trife, and later again by Sean Wiggs. Heck, it might be stretch, but even Rae had a solo song on Ironman. Who is to say that Rae did not throw some verses and such at Ghost during the Ironman process. Because later interviews due make it look like recording that one was a hard. It could also be that even Cappa helped him out at this point. All begs the question if we are going to hear the real Dennis Coles, or will it be a Ghostface Killah again. In light of all this, the mask makes a lot more sense.

In the end it has been 25 years since Supreme Clientele was originally released. In the absence of a sequel, they decided to release a Blue & Cream edition, bloggers dedicate an annual post to the influence of the album, there is a documentary in the works on the making of a Nutmeg by his barber, Black Moesis Art, and the album has been analyzed to death and then some. When it was released it was seen as Ghostface saving the Wu brand after solo albums underdelivered, especially compared to the first round. Nowadays the flag is just a legacy act, and one could argue that there is nothing to be saved this time around. But Supreme Clientele was also a very personal album about those years prior. With a timespan of 25 years, it’s going to be anybody’s guess what we will end up with next week. One thing I do know is that people stopped holding their breath for this album some time ago.

  • 1
    The Canadian version of Supreme Clientele is infamous for having a different sequencing and some huge differences. First being the inclusion of the track In The Rain (Wise), second is the Ghost Deini using the Bastards beat, third is having his Impossible verse on there.
  • 2
    I have to make a quick note here that Lord Superb is not without his problems. He was in jail for a while, convicted twice of sexual abuse charges involving a minor. Originally he was part of the American Cream Team with Raekwon, but showed up on Ghostface his sophomore too, as well as on Bulletproof Wallets. He died in 2014 at the age of 41.
  • 3
    This all started with the 2004 mixtape Bynoe (Of Tha Riot Squad) – Pain & Muzik 3 (Hosted By DJ Semi) which included a prison phone interview with him.
by Jet Set
Wu-Tang

South Of The Border: Cappadonna in Hamburg

I know a lot of brothers that think that they can flow
But when I come through, it’s like everybody’s slow

Last year it struck me that a lot of hip hop artists tend to go within their 50’s. So when I saw Cappadonna was supposed to perform in Europe, I immediately hit my friend up saying we had to go see him. After all it was him who gave me the above earworm, which has become a staple in our greeting.

One kid told me he used to be a pro
Until he bump heads with new Cappachino

Now I noticed the ads for Cappa months before he was supposed to come, so there was enough time to plan. But when push came to shove, my friend was not even in the country. With a kid on his resume, he could be forgiven. It is just one of those things when you get older and have other responsibilities to take care off. Now his absence did put me off for a minute, but in the end it could not stop me from going. It was not until the week of the concert that I actually made the decision to go and took care of travel arrangements.

You might of seen my face in the old school arena
Dipped like a fresh kid sipping on Pina

The venue of choice was Hamburg, St. Pauli Bahnhof. Just a train ride away with a one night stay. Putting it on paper like that, it reads back as an effortful undertaking for someone of Cappa’s calibre. Because he is not known for his output of classics. But rather for his consistent output, with some very interesting cover choices. Black Tarrzann and AlCappaChemist being two of the main exhibits. Next to that, as said the man is pushing his 50’s and it might as well be his last show in Germany or ever. Only more reason to go. 

I’m a felony, y’all cats a misdemeanor
Eyeballing, all on my dick like Gina

There is something to be said for an artist that is consistently putting out music. Their work ethic is quite admirable. (And he is only equalled by his equal, Killah Priest.) One would almost deduce that the man called Cappadonna speaks no other language than rhyme. This is however lost on most people. Because when people do talk about Cappadonna, they are generally referring to his features in the 90’s or that one album. His first solo: The Pillage. Knowing that, I would not expect more besides the usual suspects. In all honesty though, he is a legacy artist. It would have been a major surprise if the latter work actually resonated and everybody was waiting to hear that. Or he took the time to perform a new album as promo.

Smiling, you’re not really ready for the Whylin’
Came up strong but you scared of Staten Island

Before the show I took the time to look up his website. The first thing that struck me was that he actually had a website, which can not be said about most artists nowadays. The website mentioned fees for a 45 minute show, or 60 minute show. Nothing more than that, so I sort of knew where to set my expectations in terms of time. Even though you’ll always hope that you get that little bit more. 

All on my chest, oh the big fat medallion
What you don’t really want this here rut

I arrived early, and the streets were bustling around the venue with people drinking. The 31st of October is a holiday in Hamburg, so loads of people were out and about. They probably also took the Friday off so to enjoy a long weekend. Plus who wants to go into work with a hangover from a day of drinking.

Rhyme prostitute, rhyme slut
Battle wit dancehall king, you get struck by the lightning

When I got to the venue, I noticed the show was not sold out and quite a couple of people were buying tickets at the door. Here I could already see a slice of what the crowd was going to be like. When I got inside, it was the same and the venue was not filled up yet. But again, I was there early. As the time passed, I got myself a few drinks, checked where the sound was good, and everything slowly filled up, you could see a few young ones in between all the old heads. It was a typical divide of any 90’s hiphop show.

I tear mics up, y’all need to quit
The name of this rhyme is I splashed the shit

While surfing the worldwideweb earlier that day, I came across an annotation on the song Cap Is Back. The thing stuck with me because it was pointing out the irony of the title of the song, which itself is so poor in execution that it does anything but stress the point made with the title and chorus. I’m pretty sure Cap was not aware of this comment when he came out to the beat of Cap Is Back. But for those first 30 seconds it did get the people going.

Some of y’all sing like never before
I sleep all day while y’all trying to score

Within the span of 60 minutes Cappadonna went through the usual suspects, supported by his back up Big Nate Allstar from Boston. The two were working together pretty nicely, which was pretty remarkable given the fact that they met up just a week before the tour was about to kick off. Apparently the whole thing was sort of workshopped along the way. The constant slew of shows must have functioned like a regular workout to turn this into a well oiled machine.

Some of y’all sing like never before
I sleep all day while y’all trying to score

Behind the turn tables was DJ Dead Eye, also from Boston. He was firing up MCF,  Y’all Been Warned with a Careful Click Click verse, Slang Editorial, Triumph, and even The Pillage. Yes, Cappa did do the line, however poorly it might have aged. And nobody batted an eye in Hamburg. Probably because Cappa gave it his all. He might have gained some weight, but it sure as hell did not slow him down. He was live as ever, dancing around on the stage, jumping into the crowd with Big Nate. During which Dead Eye actually played Who Shot Ya, and Cappadonna smoothly transitioned into his Winter Warz verse while shuffling through the crowd. It worked remarkably well, and Dead Eye told me after the show that was actually his idea, to switch it up.

Then I wake up like ALIEN³
Coming at y’all niggas that stole the rhymes from me

All in all, Cappa shows can be cherished as something, he gives it his all. So much so that by the end of the show it was raining from his cap. And it can be forgiven that the sound was not the best, with the vocals not always clear. Plus I did really miss him doing Run from the Pillage, and of course SPLISH SPLASH. Yes, it was left out this show. I was told it was part of the setlist in previous shows, but the omitted it in Hamburg. You can imagine, much to my dismay. In any case, the god looked happy as he had people chanting Go Cappa Go, and slowly danced off stage and tricked everybody into a good bye.

Bitch, this is how the poor got rich
Lay on the track then insert the hit

After the show there was a meet & greet scheduled. I hung around to see how many people actually paid up for that. At first I just saw 6, but later it was more like 10 plus. Must have been an easy paycheque, a couple of pictures and signatures. Waiting there gave me the time to talk to DJ Dead Eye. Nice guy who gave me quite some insights into the process of the tour. Shout out to him. 1The month of the show he actually released a track with Method man & Inspectah Deck. Be sure to check it out. Also sounded like they were having a lot of fun, despite the full schedule. Still, I would have had more fun if they just performed Splish Splash. Instead there is nothing left to do but to drop the lyrics here. Until next time, Go Cappa, Go Cappa, Go!


Nine months later, the rap world is pregnant
Wu babies blow kid, beware the segment
Rumor has it, Donna darts create magic
Nobody in my team have it
You’ve seen my face on a $20 dollar bill
Then you hear my voice on an Iron Man reel
It’s all tragic, rule not the bull shit-atrics
Your rap is swine, mines is like catfish
Birthday rap style, come on make a wish

by VDB-King
Wu-Tang

The Shaolin Board Game

When I was little, my parents used to play boardgames on a regular. Monopoly was of course a staple, teaching the ruthlessness of a capitalistic society. As I got older, games like Trivial Pursuit were introduced. Due to me still being too young to know most of it, I found a hack in just reading all the cards. That really breaks the game though, and is a mighty example of game breaking design. After that I recall my parents more oftenly resorting to something domino-like. A more basic design of a game. It has been a while since those days.

Having played so many board games as a child, I find that I don’t have the same enthusiasm for them now. Yet I am an avid player of video games, and do play those on a very regular basis. One could say that one thing turned into another, which brings me to the following.

You know what really gained importance for me again, newsletters. It was via this medium that I noticed that Get On Down was selling a Wu-Tang inspired board game, Shaolin: A Wu-Tang Inspired Board Game. At first I did not think much of it, since Wu has so many licensed products nowadays, and sometimes they are just too gimmicky to me. I am sure there is an audience for Wu-Tang Crocs, just not me. Same for the RZA bobby digital sword, though I have to say that I never really saw bobby digital as a sword guy.

A couple of months later, I came across the game again in my inbox, this time in a mailing list from 36 Chambers. . It was at this point that I noticed the involvement of RZA’s shifu, Shi Yan Ming. A man about which I read a lot in Sophia Chang’s Baddest Bitch (https://www.sophchang.com/writing), an amazing read and recommendation for Wu fans. This connection was enough to spark my curiosity, and I decided to learn more about the game.

The backstory of the game’s creation is what really sold me. Mike and Tiffany of Chill B Games came up with the idea after watching Wu-Tang: An American Saga (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9113406). After each episode, they would dive into online recaps and discussions, quizzing each other on Wu-Tang trivia. That’s when they realized that no such trivia game existed. Despite having no prior experience in game design or connections to the music industry, they decided to create one. They didn’t want to make just another trivia game—they wanted to bring something more to the table, incorporating a storyline and elements of strategy and battle. Inspired by The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078243/), the game revolves around the journey of a monk training through 35 chambers with the ultimate goal of creating the 36th chamber.

They developed a prototype and, despite not securing an official Wu-Tang license at first, they pressed on. After playtesting it at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema on Staten Island (https://drafthouse.com/nyc/theater/staten-island), the positive feedback motivated them to move forward with mass production. During the final stages of artwork, they connected with Shifu Shi Yan Ming, who contributed original calligraphy for the game. They also managed to connect with RZA’s manager at a show, gaining the RZA-approved stamp to sell it on 36chambers.com

All in all quite a wild story that sells it to me. The game really looks like something they put their heart into, and is more than just a trivia challenge; it’s a unique intersection of Wu-Tang history, strategy, and fandom that makes it a must-have for any die-hard fan.

Now, as a trivia game, Shaolin is perfect for holiday nights with friends, where you can see who the real Wu-est fan is. Suuuuu. The inclusion of difficulty levels in the questions ensures that you do not have to limit yourself to only your fellow nerds. As said, there is a lot more to it besides the trivia aspect. Luckily they made some videos to explain how everything works (https://www.chillbgames.com/howtoplay).

Something that might be of interest for the future, would be expansion packs with new questions, which could feature groups like Sunz of Man or Killarmy, or focus on the Wu-Elements. The lore is deep enough to support it..

So whether you’re treating yourself or surprising someone else, this is the perfect gift this season. The game is available via the online stores—don’t miss out! Because this will hold you down untill we get that Wu-Tang video game Brass Lion is working on.

Get it here:
Chill B Games website: https://chillbgames.myshopify.com/products/shaolin
36 Chambers: https://36chambers.thewutangclan.com/collections/featured-releases/products/shaolin-a-wu-tang-inspired-board-game-first-edition
Mass Appeal: https://shop.massappeal.com/products/shaolin-wu-tang-inspired-board-game-by-chill-b-games
Get On Down: https://getondown.com/products/shaolin-1st-edition-board-game
HHV: https://www.hhv.de/en/records/item/chill-b-games-shaolin-wu-tang-inspired-board-game-1144990

Wu-Tang

Eastern Winds Can Be Icy

This week is a bit weird. Yesterday felt like Friday, and on top of that I have the feeling that January is only just getting started. But the fact of the matter is that we already arrived at the end of the month with only this evening left. Yet there I was in December 2023 planning to post about Killarmy in January. Well that did not turn out as planned. The month itself had some damn cold weeks up here in the Northern hemisphere. So cold that the clear mornings turned into a literal Red Dawn. Even with that ominous beautiful daily reminder of incoming doom I ended up writing in the last hours.

In my previous post I wrote about how Killarmy’s third album deserved a better name that was more in line with the previous two. Since, I have been going back over the second album, Dirty Weaponry. Which gave me a podcast that bored me even at 1,5 times the speed. A remarkable feat if you ask me. More interesting though, while looking into Dirty Weaponry I actually discovered a 1990 album called Dirty Weapons, by Killer Dwarfs, a Canadian hard rock band.1 The similarities between the name of the group and the title of the album are so close, that one would almost wonder if this was a starting point for the group. Something I would follow up were it not for the simple fact that the name of the Killarmy comes from the Shaw Brothers movie Killer Army.2 Furthermore, the term dirty weapons is a broad term within the military that took more foothold after the fall of the Soviet Union due to nuclear material going missing. Which would play into the hands of the existence of so called dirty bombs.

Something else I did not know until recently, was that the quotes on the album are from the cartoon series Todd Mcfarlane’s Spawn. So far I have only had time to watch the first episode of the short lived series.3 But the style immediately struck me and reminded me of an adult version of Batman Beyond. Looking forward to watching the rest and see what it brings. For clarification, I am not familiar with the comic, and it could be that it just takes style notes from there.

The voice over of Spawn that they spliced into the Dirty Weaponry was a perfect fit. The reflections on fighting & warriors always sounded like it came from some bleak 70’s/80’s movie. It actually was a perfect fit when I was editing the video for Red Dawn with the scenes of Red Dawn. Which brings me to this second version of the video focused on January, that still holds up pretty well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfOtCt7NDcA
  1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killer_Dwarfs) ↩︎
  2. The correct name would be The Rebel Intruders. Killer Army was an alias that was used in the foreign markets. The original name is ????. https://hkmdb.com/db/movies/view.mhtml?id=6149&display_set=eng ↩︎
  3. The animated series ran for only 3 seasons with a total of 18 episodes. With a running time of about 26 to 30 minutes each. ↩︎
Albums, Wu-Tang

AMO: A Missed Opportunity?

December is a cold month in the northern part of the northern hemisphere. It is the time of the year where you put up decorations for holidays, but also gear up to brace for the freezing cold outside. Hoodied up with Timberlands and a North Face this is not the times for breezy songs.

With this interlude about the cold I liked to talk about Killarmy a bit. Because the other day I was thinking about their first three albums. We got the debut album Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars from 1997. Which was followed up the next year with Dirty Weaponry. After that it took a few years for a new album to appear, which eventually came on September 11th, 2001 in the form of Fear, Love & War1.

For now I just wanted to talk a bit about that title, Fear, Love & War. Because the other day I was placing the titles in order, and the first two seem to fit with the concept of the group. But the title of the third album just seems to be the odd one out. This could be due to the album starting as a 9th Prince solo2, but that is just a guess since I do not know how it was decided upon. 

The first two titles have a clear reference to weapons. In this case we could see the reference to weapons as a metaphor to the music. In the third one this is not so visible, and just broadly alludes to war. Would it not have been more interesting if they kept this in line with a title like Insurgency Weapons and Tactics, Sonic Jihad3, or Weapons of Mass Disruption. Or maybe even looking for something in reference to proxy wars, or even drones. Just think this was a missed opportunity for a nice sounding trilogy. 

That all being said, and it was just a thought, the album still stands to be enjoyed. At least I do. But I am aware not everybody thinks that way about it. One thing I can say is that it misses some of the movie & tv samples that were spliced into the first two records. Those really gave a sense of reflection and reporting. Like the on screen text during a film.

Case in point would be the track Red Dawn from the Dirty Weaponry that ends on a quote about warriors. Which brings me to the video I forgot about originally, but is perfect to share here. Red Red Dawn Dawn is a music video for Red Dawn set to scenes from the film Red Dawn. With this combination it juxtaposes the war themed rhymes from Killarmy with the insurgency of the Wolverines from the film. Making for a cold but on point viewing.

  1. Next to the album being released on September 11th 2001, this album was released on Loud Records. Whereas the previous ones where released through the Wu-Tang Records/Priority Records collaboration. By 2001 Loud Records was in a bad state, after just moving to Sony. According to reports the money was drying up. So little promo was given to the releases that were there. By 2002 the label was shut down unceremoniously. ↩︎
  2. 9th Prince elaborated on this in an Instagram post on his account. It was RZA who convinced him to make it a Killarmy album. Sadly I can not find the post at this moment of writing. ↩︎
  3. Completely aware that this is actually the title of an album by Paris that was released two years later in 2003. ↩︎
Wu-Tang

Method Man Bigging Up the UK on Drink Champs

So you go to the Soul Train Awards. You end up in the House Of Blues. Meanwhile you are high as a kite on shrooms. In the club you see Puffy with 6 bodyguards. Which sobers you up to the reality that there seems to be an East Coast – West Coast beef. You speak to Puffy a bit, and get paranoid as fuck afterwards because somebody might have seen you talk to him and you are on the West Coast. Plus, did that actually happen? Normally Puffy is never that nice. So you just sit back in the back while the shrooms are peaking. All of a sudden out of nowhere you hear: METH! METH! It is the one and only Queen Latifah asking what the fuck you are doing in the corner like that and pulling you over. Sometimes, you just need a friend like that with that energy.

That could be the end of a story. But what if at the end of the night you walk into Tupac and Suge. And ‘Pac is all politicking about how the RZA incident1 would have never happened if he was there. On top of that he shares that everything is cool between Death Row and Wu. Meaning that it was not a East versus West beef, but just Death Row and Bad Boy. What do you do? You zone out on the Tupacs Death Row piece. That is what you do when you are Tical.

This story of course caught my ear, as did several other anecdotes by Meth. Like the story about the Got My Mind Made Up2, his appearance on Oz3 and his acting career. If you want to hear all about that, go listen. I just wanted to follow up what Meth was sharing about the UK, because he gave some big ups there.

So first off, there is Ocean Wisdom. This is a British rapper is apparently famous for rapping faster than Eminem on Rap God. I actually know him from his feature with Meth called Ting Dun. Which caught my ear immediately due to the sample. It uses a vocal sample by The RZA from his Airwaves track off RZA as bobby digital In Stereo. Which was also used in The Anthem by Sway & King Tech, featuring Pharoahe Monch, Eminem, Xzibit and KRS One. That track is a fucking classic. And on that foundation we have Ting Dun.

Ocean Wisdom ft. Method Man – Ting Dun

Meth also mentioned Blue Meth and the song Winnebago. To be honest, I was not blown away listening to this. Nor have I heard before of Blue Meth. But here it is. 

Blue Meth ft. Method Man – Winnebago

For this one I had to look a bit harder. Meth only mentioned P Kay. Quite a generic name. But at some point, gonig by the lyrics Meth was spitting, I found the track. By the sounds of it you’d think this was a fresh battle rapper. But you might be a little surprised when you see the video because P Kay is bit older. But you’d never guess that from the verse Method Man was spitting. Well if this was entertaining I’d suggest going down the rabbit hole that is Pete & Bas, and maybe even Northern Boys. They have been doing grime for a bit now and are pretty entertaining.

Patrick Karneigh Junior – Sindu Sesh

Talking about grime, it is nice to see Little Simz be named and recognized. One of the biggest artists to come out of the UK in a while, with multiple awards to her name. Meth mentioned the recent track Gorilla from her NO THANK YOU album. But I’d like to highlight another track of hers called Venom. A must hear that really demonstrates that Little Simz is on a whole ‘nother level as an MC, and Meth knows. If you do want to listen to more of Little Simz, I can recommend the Sometimes I Might be Introvert album.  

Little Simz – Venom [Live @ Colors]

Speaking of Little Simz, and MC’s needing to step their game up to compete with her. You can also find her in the Top Boy series. In which she acts alongside the great Kano, a true grime legend. His last two albums, T-Shirt weather in the Manor and Hoodies all summer are classics to me. And just for the hell of it I am posting his Class Of Deja underneath.

Kano ft. Ghetts & D Double – Class of Deja / Trouble [Short film]


Top Boy series also featured Dave. Dave his first album is Psychodrama. When I first heard this album, I was caught off guard by how fucking insanely great it is. It is one of those records that captures depression and guilt in a way that one can feel the pain while listening. The Lesley track is an true culmination of all that pain into a 11 minute track that passes before you know it because it captivates you into the story. First time I heard it, I kept rewinding it, not knowing that I kept rewinding 6 minutes or more. The people in the shop must have thought I was crazy. With that being said, I can also recommend the Dissect series on Psychodrama. It will give you a lot more context on Dave and the album.

Dave – Black [Live at The BRITs 2020]

If you have not yet, give the Drink Champs episode a listen. It is a bit long, as most of the time. But Method Man shares some great stories, and the episodes does not divulge into a drunk shouting match.

  1. The RZA incident refers to an incident in the 662 club in Las Vegas. Somebody from Wu got into a fight with people from Death Row, allegedly Danny Boy was included. In the fight, RZA got his chain snatched. Tupac made sure that RZA got his chain back, and explained to Meth how this would have never happened if he was there. There are interviews with Tupac & U-god in which this is mentioned. ↩︎
  2. The 2Pac track Mind Made Up from the All Eyez On Me album was originally a Dogg Pound track meant for Dogg Food with Lady Of Rage, The Dogg Pound, Method Man, Redman and Inspectah Deck on there. It did not end up on there because they lost the A-DATs with the track on there. Fast forward to 2Pac coming out of jail, and on to Death Row. While they are working on the album Daz is going through his A-DATS, and finds the record. At this point Lady Of Rage had already used her verse on her own album, so Daz decided to take that off and give it to Pac. He loved it and immediately recorded his verse.
    Now here there are multiple stories. Some say 2Pac though the track was too long, so he could off Deck. Some say the 3rd A-DAT was not there with Decks verse. And there is the story that ‘Pac cut Decks verse because there was no more beat.
    Besides that it also seemed that Dre took credit at first. When 2Pac found out that Daz actually did the beat, they started to drift a part.
    The original version with Deck his verse can be found here. ↩︎
  3. The character of Method Man actually got killed off after a few episodes due to his tardiness. ↩︎
by Jet Set
Wu-Tang

Ol’ Dirty Gets a Podcast

This week Ol’ Dirty Bastard would have turned 55 years old. If it was not for his untimely passing 19 years ago. I still remember reading about it, and it all sort of feeling unreal and distant. When I told people that day about his death, they did not seem to care at all. As if it was just normal or something.

Throughout the years it seems his image has only gotten bigger. In part due to the various personal stories that people have shared after his death. Stories that showed a human Russell Jones that knew what was happening, and cared deeply about the people he loved. But during his life, he was a character of enormous proportions that the media loved to portray as crazy. Somebody with crazy antics and classic rock star drug abuse, just so outlandish. But never once did they start questioning if he may have had a problem. It was just the life. 

Since his death, various things have been announced. A biopic amongst things, which goes as far back as 2012 (https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/ol-dirty-bastard-biopic-will-star-michael-k-williams-59115/), with the late Michael K Williams attached. But it seems now something actually has solidified. Announced last year (https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/music-news/ol-dirty-bastard-documentary-official-1235122891/#!), a documentary has been released via A&E titled titled ODB: A Tale of Two Dirtys. Though I have yet to see it, since I have not been able to find it online and it seem to be coming soon (https://www.aetv.com/specials/ol-dirty-bastard-a-tale-of-two-dirtys).

Following that milestone, a podcast has now also been announced, and started last week. The eight-part podcast is titled ODB: A Son Unique (https://art19.com/shows/odb-a-son-unique), done by the photographer Khalik Allah. Who some might know for his Popa Wu: A 5% Story [2010] (https://youtu.be/lBIO2kDovrA), a documentary that dived into the story of the late Popa Wu, and interviewed many of his peers. For ODB: A Son Unique, Khalik Allah will dive into the story of Russell Jones. And explore his background, beliefs and his world. The podcast will also feature interviews with Buddha Monk, Raekwon & Popa Wu amongst others.

Fair to say, I have not yet started listening yet, but I am excited about this podcast. It is also great to finally see something materialize. So I am happy to see his legacy is being taken care off. I hope it does him justice.

Ghostface Killah, Wu-Tang

Crypto Rules/d Everything For A Moment

Back in 2017 I wrote about Ghostface backing the C.R.E.A.M. token. This was right around the time when everybody and their uncle was pushing an ICO as a means of making a lot of money. Well that hype went down with a complete crash of the market in 2018. That was also while the market was being over rug pulls and other scams. Which attracted attention of government bodies like the SEC. And like that it was all gone.

At the end of the this wave was Young Dirty Bastard with the introduction of the Dirty Coin, which was supposed to launch via a ICO too. He had some nice ideas to connect this with funding of his album, books, and video games. But as a holder you’d also be able to use it as payment for concerts, merch and music by ODB.

Pretty ambitious plan, video games take years to make. But a plan that sounded much better than most who jumped on the bandwagon back then. Sadly, there is not much news to be found after this initial press moment. At least I can’t find any updates on it. This is one of those cases where you’d like to see a website with updates. What I did find is that the TAO Network, that Dirty Coin was supposed to use, looks pretty solid and seems to be still in use. It actually has branched out to include NFT’s. Something which would have been interesting for Dirty Coin with its music focus. For now I do have to conclude that it never launched.

I actually thought the same happened to C.R.E.A.M. So imagine my surprise that it actually launched and is still being traded, at a current price of about $ 23,-. According to Coin Market Cap the token launched back in 2020 on the Ethereum network, almost three years after it was announced. About 6 months after this it hit it’s all-time high with a price of $368,26. Shortly after that, it fell down hard, and has been going down ever since. Which is in line with the rest of the market. One other thing that I noticed, is that there is no notice of Ghostface any more. Nor did I see Ghost mention this. It seems like they parted ways, or he cashed in.

In the years since we have seen up and downs in the markets, as well as the rise & fall of NFT’s. The infamous Once Upon A Time In Shaolin made smart use of these digital contracts when the record was resold to a DAO. Giving the fans a little bit of hope that they might actually listen to it one day. I know they were working on bringing this to the public, but it has already been two years since. Hopefuly they will find a way.

After this Ghostface Killah did a NFT collabration with Fake Rare Pepe. Something I did not hear about earlier and have yet to hear any music from. It seems Rolling Stone and other outlets also did no hear about this when they reported on Ghost selling unreleased lyrics from the 90’s as NFT’s on the marketplace S!NG Market. Again, no news after the initial announcement. And a quick search turns up no results. Which makes me wonder if any were ever actually sold. You’d think people would fiend for some vintage Ironman lyrics. This was the period he was dealing with a lot.

One of the most surprising things that happened with NFT’s might be U-God. He partnered up with Melos to release two songs at the beginning of this year. The timing of this makes it surprising because nobody was talking about NFT’s anymore, and the hypetrain was sort of over. Nevertheless, he did move forward, and the songs are actually being offered on his website. Proof that they have actually sold can be found on OpenSea, where one can also listen to the full songs. They’re nice, but nothing to unique to me.

Writing all this down, I might have missed some things. Yet I can’t stop but wonder if it would not have been best if they had worked together back in 2017. Setting up an ICO, or backing a token, with the option of having NFT’s in the future. This would have been an interesting move. At least Bar Sun had the vision of what it could all do. Mind you, NFT’s are not something that was completely new. Nor was crypto. The year 2017 just saw a boom, same for 2021. The tech was already there for a couple of years. Maybe the future does hold something interesting for Wu & tech.

by Jet Set
Wu-Tang

Killarmy: Unleashing Sonic Conspiracies and Subversive Manifestos

Killarmy, an integral component of the renowned Wu-Tang Clan collective, has carved a distinctive niche in the realm of hip-hop, defying conventional norms by embracing provocative themes and conspiratorial undertones. Rooted in the ethos of conspiracy theories, the group’s music serves as a canvas upon which they weave intricate tales of clandestine agendas, socio-political machinations, and the struggle for emancipation. At the heart of their artistry lies a deep understanding of texts like “Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars” and others, manifesting in an auditory experience that challenges listeners to question the status quo.

“Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars,” a controversial text that emerged from the shadows of classified documents, serves as a cornerstone of Killarmy’s lyrical lexicon. Rooted in the alleged clandestine operations of powerful elites, the text delves into socio-economic manipulation and control mechanisms. Killarmy masterfully incorporates these themes, employing metaphorical warfare and vivid storytelling to convey the interconnectedness of power structures and their impact on marginalized communities.

Killarmy’s music becomes a conduit for unveiling suppressed narratives and igniting a sonic revolution. Their lyrics evoke a sense of urgency, urging listeners to question the dominant narrative and search for hidden truths. Through metaphorical language and historical references, they expose societal injustices, governmental malfeasance, and media propaganda, all while weaving a compelling sonic tapestry that captivates and challenges the audience’s perception.

Killarmy’s distinctive artistic approach, influenced by texts like “Silent Weapons for Quiet Wars,” showcases their prowess in combining conspiracy theories, socio-political commentary, and raw lyricism. By presenting alternative perspectives through their music, the group empowers listeners to question the established order and delve deeper into the complex web of conspiracies that surround us. In this era of ever-growing information dissemination, Killarmy’s sonic conspiracies serve as an invitation to critically engage with the world, stimulating discussions and inciting the pursuit of truth.

By intertwining potent lyricism with conspiracy theories, Killarmy emerges as a visionary force in hip-hop, demonstrating the genre’s capacity to provoke critical analysis and ignite social consciousness. Their sonic manifesto beckons listeners to join them on a journey of enlightenment, where the boundaries of truth and deception blur, ultimately leading to a heightened understanding of our complex world. In the realm of Killarmy’s conspiratorial symphony, the revolution lies within the soundwaves.

Albums, Ghostface Killah, Wu-Tang

When Will Ghost Finish Supreme Clientele 2?

Back in September 2021 Ghostface Killah claimed that Supreme Clientele 2 was on the horizon, and would arrive February 2022. Kanye West, Mike Dean & Producer Plug Uni would be executive producing, and with that there was a little bit of hope for the sequel to the lauded sophomore LP by Ghost.

SUPREME CLIENTELE 2 IS EXECUTIVE PRODUCED BY: KANYE WEST, MIKE DEAN & PRODUCERPLUGUNI.COM, RELEASE DATE: FEB 2022 – DINI

r/hiphopheads/

This was preceded by an Instagram post in October 2020 where Ghost confirmed working on it with a caption saying “WU-BLOCK.. SUPREME 2 IN THE MAKING!!!! #wutangforever #ghostfacemusic #supremeclientele #wublock #ghostfacekillah“. Again people were hyped. But so far, we have gotten nothing.

The original Supreme Clientele holds a special place in a lot of peoples hearts, and a sequel to the album would be something special like a sequel to Only Built For Cuban Linx…, which we got back in 2009. And for which Raekwon also announced a third part. That being said, this is not the first time we heard about the Supreme Clientele 2.

The announcements actually go back to 2010 when it was first mentioned, and January 2011, when Ghost posted a video on Youtube in which he said it was coming. Which state it was, was still unknown at the time. It wasn’t untill February 2013 when he did an interview with Montreality and talked about the album:

Blue & Cream. Hopefully, hopefully this summer, hopefully this summer. Like, maybe like August or something like that. I’m going to try for August, September or maybe July, you know what I mean. But I think August might sound more reasonable if i can do it. I shouldn’t set it, because sometimes when I say a date, it don’t ever fuck around and whatchama. But I gotta put it out because I’ve been sitting on it for like, going on three years.

Montreality

In the same interview Ghost also mentioned his DOOMSTARKS project and 12 Reasons To Die. When fall came, there was no DOOMSTARKS project. 2013 only saw the release of the Adrian Younge collaboration 12 Reasons To Die. And with the recent passing of DOOM, their collaboration project may never be finalized.

It wasn’t untill deep in 2014, when Ghostface spoke to DX Daily and mentioned that Supreme Clientele 2: Blue & Cream was 85% done. He still wanted to get some people on there, and samples had to be cleared. A weird claim when the album was supposed to be ready a year ago. But creative processes could always change course. So who is to say what happened and what the state was. In hindsight, that 15% seems to be further from completion than ever.

By now it is safe to say that we have been waiting for more years than Supreme Clientele was old when it was first announced. On multiple occasions it seemed almost done, just some samples clear. But we have to take into account that Tony has been clear on the fact he does not work with deadlines any more, ever since the problems that arose out of that with Ironman. So yeah, by this point a lot of people have given up on ever seeing this album. And I’m afraid that any mention of this album without anything to back it up, will just water down the hype more.

That is not to say the Ghost has been sitting still. Since 2011 he has had a steady stream of music. From Wu Massacre to Wu Block to 12 Reasons To Die, Sour Soul, 36 Seasons, The Ghost Files, Ghostface Killahs, Czrface meets Ghostface. Ranging in quality from great to filler. And he has had some more than questionable business endeavours in the form of his recent Christmas EP and now a album in two versions on the Stem Player.

Especially the stem player has people talking. Since this was first used for the release of Donda, and Mike Dean & Ye were supposed to help up finish the album with Ghost, people are asking if this would be the much anticipated sequel. Something that would me sense for this expensive project. But so far it just seems like this is a normal collection of tracks for this project without any further vision as far as I know.

At this point, only time will tell when we will see it if ever. But hopefully it will be earlier than we hear Once Upon A Time In Shaolin or The Cure. Because at this point I got my money on hearing that million dollar album sooner than we’d be hearing Supreme Clientele 2: Blue & Cream.

by Jet Set
Albums, Wu-Tang

Bugsy Pulls Off Wu-Elements Album

This is something of a first. Bugsy Da God got an album that is exclusively produced by Bronze Nazareth, 4th Disciple & True Master. A thing that fans have been asking for for year, albums exclusively produced by the Wu-Elements. Even though it is 2022, soundwise this most definitely delivers. Bugsy Da God & Dom Pachino delivered with that. Magnificent is some classic True Master, and Wrath Of God is some classic 4th. Banging.
Not going to lie, the sound is solid. And I’d say that if they continue this vision, a niche could be carved out for some solid Wu Killabeez releases this way. It is nothing game changing, but it is a familiar and solid sound. Often that is just what the fans are looking for. Especially those who got older and are out of tune with the sounds of the day.

by Jet Set
Wu-Tang

The House That Hatred Built by Gravediggaz

Back in the early 2000’s the idea of a proper Gravediggaz reunion or a recasting was super exciting. Over and over there were rumors. Warcloud, Killah Priest & Shabazz would be more involved. RZA would take the reigns again. But nothing ever really materialized after the death of Poetic, making Nightmare In A-Minor their last official collective effort.
Nowadays I’m not following everything what happens that much, and much time has passed since it sounded like something I’d like to hear. But some time ago Prince Paul took the time to share an unreleased Gravediggaz demo called The House That Hatred Built.
Apparently this was the first demo the group recorded ever, back in 1991. This recording, and the start of the Gravediggaz, predates the recording of the Wu-Tang Clan for RZA. There is actually a lot of interesting information about this and the formation of the Gravediggaz in this interview he did with Brian Coleman at Trinity College. Like how the album was recorded in full before Enter The Wu-Tang, but only released 9 months after. So be sure to read all about that there.

Another thing I came across, was the fact that the Gravediggaz declined a deal with Ruthless Records. Prince Paul actually met with Eazy-E & Jerry Heller, and this was during which he had a hard time finding a home for the record. But the deal they offered was so bad he still had to decline. There is more to read in this track by track run down of 6 Feet Deep that Prince Paul did with HipHopSite back in 2013.

Speaking of tracks. It seems that from time to time people did still record under the Gravediggaz monniker. Which leads to the following track I came across, 2 More Cups Of Blood. In 2010 Shabazz did an interview with Wu-International in which he revealed that the Gravediggaz was back together. It was him, Priest, Frukwan, 9th Prince, Beretta 9/Kinetic was there, and RZA & Prince Paul were also involved. Shabazz stated, ‘3 more songs and the new album is done! I recorded at Rza’s crib. He called me and we had a looong overdue reunion!!! Priest came thru too. So yes Gravediggaz is coming soon!!https://wutangcorp.com/forum/showthread.php?103433-Shabazz-the-disciple-wu-international-interview!!!!!!‘ He even mentions that he has some Poetic verses that they might use on the record, making it a complete reunion. Sadly nothing official ever saw the light of day or the dark of night save for this track. Apparently this was leaked by RZA himself, and most defintely flew under my radar.

One of the biggest tracks that Gravediggaz are known for, and also introduced some people to Shabazz The Disciple & KIllah Priest, is Diary Of A Mad Man. Now people seem to think that RZA produced this record, but in a video interview back in 2018 Prince Paul cleared up the air surrounding that record: “Alright, so RNS gets credit for the record [sample]. RZA gets credit ’cause it went through RZA, and me, ’cause I put the whole record together: programmed the drums, put the court pieces and stuff in it. But when you look at the credits, everybody goes ‘Yeah, RZA produced it, but Paul had nothin’ to do with it.’…it’s obviously a Prince Paul production, you can hear how it’s done. Nobody makes stuff like that, at least during that time.“

The whole story you can hear about in the video underneath.

That said, Diary of a Madman is obviously a classic that many people hold dear. The track itself with the court, and the video is like no other. The video was actually direct by Hype Williams, who would later direct many more music videos in his own style. Which brings me to the following: Diary Of A Madman Part 2
About six month ago the Warcloud meets Killah Priest effort Savage Sanctuary got released on Black Stone of Mecca. This album carrying the track Diary of a Madman Pt. 2 featuring a slew of people on a original RZA beat. The track first surfaced on a Black Knights album a few year ago, but with in a horrible state. This time around they seemed to have cleared up the recordings and the mix a bit.
Rumors about this track travel back to around 2005 I believe. Word was that a part 2 was recorded with Priest, Shabazz & Warcloud. And again nothing ever got released, and now we finally have the track, 15 years later. Was it worth the wait?

by Jet Set
Albums, Wu-Tang

Another Priest Album: Mr. Universe

It seems that every moon cycle Killah Priest manages to drop another album. This time around he got one with Jordan River Banks again, after the 2020 The Third Eye In Technicolor. The album continues the current style Priest has managed since Rocket To Nebula, also back in 2020. So it might not be everyone’s cup of tea.

And if you are wondering what Priest has been up to, you can visit his Bandcamp to find Rocket To Nebula, The Third Eye In Technicolor, The Last Ride with the HRMN, Ragnarok, The Goddess and The Priest with Bliss, and Savage Sanctuary with The Holocaust/Warcloud.

What is missing from this list of the last two years is Lord Sun Heavy Mental 1.1, Summer End Cafe, Divine Intervention with True Master, The Three Fantastic Supermen Epic, and Horrah Scope.

As you can see, Priest has been very consistent in his output of music.

by Jet Set
Wu-Tang

Where did this ODB track come from?

Pretty sick tune that crossed my path the other day. An unreleased track by Ol’ Dirty, of which there are not many left any more. Produced by The RZA, and it is actually banging. Too bad about the quality, but it leave me wondering from which era this is. Sounds like his 2nd album though.
Albums, Wu-Tang

RZA Returns With Digital Potions

Looks like RZA is going to give us a 3rd EP in two years with Digital Potions. He talked about this EP previously with the release of Pugilism back in April 2021. This is the end transformed into the Saturday Afternoon Kung Fu Theater EP with DJ Scratch. Yes I am just as confused as you are. (That last one was also called RZA vs bobby digital at one point.) Even more so since there has been no update on his website or in any outlets. Just on the websites of the various records stores who are stating it as a Record Store Day release.

It seems to feature the following 7 songs:

  1. Fashion
  2. Better Than Yours
  3. Flagrant Flavors
  4. Garden State
  5. Rain on Em
  6. Attack of the Lioness
  7. Don’t Cry on My Shoulder



Visit the following the links to order your copy.
Rough Trade
Good Taste Records
Elmhurst Records


by Jet Set