Unfortunately, the Clan only managed to sell just under 69k in their first week, which landed them at the #25 spot. Of course, the days of huge album sales are over for pretty much everybody, but the telling number is that low rank: in the past, when a Wu album dropped, it was going to land at the top of the chart, no questions asked. The somewhat disappointing numbers can be attached to several things, from all the public infighting perpetrated by Rae & Ghost that I think turned a lot of people off--either from listening in the first place or otherwise giving the record a fair enough shot when it landed from out of left field. Also, where is the video? Supposedly a dual vid for The Heart Gently Weeps & Take it Back was about to be filmed several weeks ago--but then again it seems so unlikely that the RZA could manage to get Rae, Ghost, & everyone else involved to show up for a video shoot in the first place, who knows if it even happened. But recently Inspectah Deck's comments seem to show that the Clan is swaying away from the RZA & that the (RZAless) Shaolin vs Wu-Tang project might actually materialize after all [even though both Inspectah Deck & the GZA have very recently discussed plans for fully-RZA-produced solo projects]. Add to this growing list the fact that the Wu tour just kicked off in Chicago a few days back with everyone in attendance except for the Abbot, & that according to people at those first shows, not a single 8 Diagrams track was performed.
Originally I had thought the first week's sales figures might make a natural stopping point for this blog project, but obviously there is still more & more relevant information to chronicle even after the release of the 8 Diagrams.
...either the Wu-apocalypse or the arrival of 8 Diagrams. While the big day is about to be here (actually is here for most international fans) there is some more of he-said-this, he-said-that from Raekwon, who continues to insist that he will spearhead a new RZAless Wu album called Shaolin vs Wu-Tang. But even with all of Chef's naysaying, he does retain the good sense of endorsing the album & he recommends that fans go cop it tomorrow. Then, Meth also drops in for a spell, & his tone & statements seem to not quite coincide with what was reported in the "VH1" piece from the other day, pointing once again to the probable fakeness of that report. Still, Meth is both candid & in the end, much more loyal toward the RZA than either Ghost & Rae have been in the leadup to 8 Diagrams.
The Streets Is Talking: News & Notes From The Underground
Raekwon the Chef recommends that you go buy the Wu-Tang Clan's 8 Diagrams LP when it comes out Tuesday, but he can't honestly say it's the Clan's best work. "I'm supporting it," he said backstage at the recent J.A.M. Awards, which took place at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom. "Go get it. I'm on it. I laid down the dressing on that. But like I said, it could've been stronger! I know the capabilities that we all have when we all sit in the room together. And then, at the end of the day, it was leaning towards RZA's world. I told RZA, 'This is a Wu-Tang Clan album. This ain't RZA's album.' If we say, 'We need this to proceed,' respect what we need to proceed.
"You dealing with a whole crew collectively, and [our] collective thoughts," Rae added. "You gotta keep that a part of the protocol. That wasn't a part of the protocol — we still try to give this man as much props as he deserves, 'cause he did so much. It's like listening to [Michael] Jordan, saying, 'Follow my hand.' But at the same time, Jordan ain't been around for a while. So now it's gotta be about the team. Ain't no I's in team. When Jordan's head gets too big, you gotta tell Jordan that's what it ain't about. It's team."
The Clan's dirty laundry has been aired out in recent weeks, with Rae and Ghostface Killah alleging creative and financial neglect by the RZA. The pair say they've basically been speaking for the rest of the group.
"It's a lot going on, and like I said, this is not no publicity stunt," Rae maintained. "This is more or less about men understanding men and men respecting men. At the end of the day, I got a family to feed, kid. ... I got children that's going to school that I'm paying for shit for them to make it, and I refuse to sit here and act like another n---a is gonna tell me how I need to do what I gotta do. If it ain't how it used to be, then something's the matter. So, at the end of the day, it's just a nigga's water broke. Like a bitch being pregnant, she can't take it no more, her shit go blow!"
The Chef told us he explained his discontent to the RZA a while ago.
"I let nigga know about his wicked ways before I [came] out and [addressed] this [in public]," he said. "So nigga never say, 'Oh, Chef did it out the blue on some ...' Nigga, you know how I feel. ... It's tough love, but you gonna respect me. ... I can [opine] on how I feel, and if I feel it ain't right ... like I told RZA, 'Yo, I don't get nothing outta trying to shoot at you. I hope you don't get nothing out of shooting at me.' But respect that we supposed to be like this. The ill shit is, it's 10 years later, 15 years later. You mean to tell me you don't look at me like a general? You got a problem."
Method Man, who was under the impression that the album was being pushed back until next year, is also not pleased with how the project turned out and even more disappointed that the dissention has been made public.
"When niggas went in to do the album, it was little discrepancies here and there," he admitted. "Everybody talking and shit. Everybody talking at RZA and not to him. Him being who he is and where he came from, of course he's goanna poke his chest out. And it's gonna be a standoff. [8 Diagrams] is the results of it right here. I don't think anybody is listening to anybody. What I did as a constant, I spit on what I was required to spit on. I'm not trying to throw no monkey wrench in anything. I strived to make the album sound like an album."
Meanwhile, the author of 1995's classic Only Built 4 Cuban Linx ... album says he's spearheading an LP called Shaolin vs. the Wu-Tang and that it will feature basically the entire Clan, except for the RZA.
"That's how I feel right now," Rae barked. "It's coming and it's gonna be a lesson learned. That's a lesson to bust the Abbott's ass and let him know what we do. At the end of the day, if nobody don't do nothing, Chef's gonna show and prove. You [can only] hold in but so much, my dude."
While Meth feels that the LP could have been better, the RZA remains his brother.
"I love the shit out of RZA; that's my muthafucking nigga, right there," Tical said. "Thick and thin and back again. However nigas feel about the god, that's how they feel. But they can't speak for everybody. So if my name pops up in anything and you ain't hear it from the horse's mouth, don't believe what you heard.
"Hell yeah, on my behalf," Meth continued about whether the fences can be mended. "I speak for myself: Shit can be salvaged. Yep. Hell yeah, and the gods know how, too. I ain't at liberty to say with you, but niggas know how they can fix it with me."
In the meantime, remember to go get a copy of the 8 Diagrams album sometime tomorrow.
Pyro Radio recently reported a new interview between the RZA & SK Vibemakers. The entire thing can be downloaded in mp3 format here, though the file is huge. As usual I will excerpt the pertinent pieces of information below.
S: So why now with this album because many of us thought that there would never be another Wu Tang album?
R: First of all it was on me really I felt like it should be done, I felt like I needed to come back and do something about the situation, I`m doing well with things, with films, scores and life is looking better for me I ain’t gonna front but I walked away from Hip Hop but I walked away without closing the book and with Wu Tang it was the same, even if guys put there solo albums out every year, life Ghostface puts an album out, Method Man but you still don`t get that collaborative spirit and I knew I had to come back and do it one more time for the people because we ain’t making a lot of money from this, there`s money there don`t get me twisted but it`s not like the sort of money with what I`m doing already but this a sacrifice, a worthwhile sacrifice because I`m doing it for my crew and for the fans that want another dose of this
S: A couple weeks back we spoke to Steve Rifkind and obviously your first 4 albums were released through Loud Records and Loud was shut in 2001, but now your back with him again opening up Loud records for just one record, what`s it like being back with Steve Rifkind?
R: I think Steve Rifkind is the only Record Executive that would be able to put out a Wu Tang Album, because most executives are just putting the what I call cookie cutter type of hip hop, just throwing it out there and not even caring about the purity of the sound or the purity of the people, I`m not saying the 8 Diagrams album is the same as the 36 Chambers, but the purity of us makes like it regardless so even with `My Heart Gently Weeps` which is well produced you got John Frusciante from the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Dhani Harrsion the son of George Harrsion playing acoustic guitar, you got Erykah Badu singing the hook this sounds like a BIG song but once Ghostface and Raekwon start rapping the pop of it leaves, it`s not only the spirit of the music, it`s the spirit of the mc`s there voices. But with Steve Rifkind I think that he is the only executive that can deliver with his job, the reason I say that is that most executives want to tell you what to do, he`s the type of executive that trusts his artists, he came to me like yo I want to do it how we done it in 93, in 1993 you asked me what you wanted and I said yes and that`s how we gonna do it tell me what you want from this campaign
S: My Heart Gently Weeps is that the first single
R: Yeah that`s the first official single, you know Wu Tang always got an underground single then we got an official single, the underground single was at first `Watch Your Mouth` but we had a little sample problem with that and if you got that song already you got lucky (laughs) you know Sk Vibemakers got it though, but the rough single now is `Take It Back` for any that wants to hear us air it out with no remorse and `My Guitar Gently Weeps` is a Song that you can hear us air it out but in a song format, the videos are being filmed in a weeks time I`m co directing it with Malik Sayeed.
S: Are there any external features on the 8 Diagram album?
R: Not really any mc`s, Streetlife is the only other mc on there that`s not signed on as a legal member and for the fans that ever wondered if Cappadonna is an official member, he is now officially and legally signed on as a member of Wu Tang we sorted that out this year, George Clinton’s on there, most people think he`s from the west coast but he`s from the East Coast his house is actually only a few miles from my house and George Clinton and ODB were really tight, they spent a lot of personal time together and cos ODB`s spirit is not here physically on this record you remember on Iron Flag when I had Flava Flav who`s just as wild, but to me George Clinton gave me some of that ODB flavour that you wouldn’t be able to get.
S: Are there any ODB vocals on the album?
R: I think there’s one or two vocals on there’s, there’s one which is a performance ODB did back in 1992, before any of the albums, it was a demo we had in my crib, the 16th chamber and that`s the bonus track.
S: I`m hearing about all the internal conflicts with Wu Tang, after all the delays the album is meant to come 4th of December and Ghostface was gonna bring out his album the same day, and then were hearing that he was upset that there both coming out on the same day and he tried to get it pushed back, what`s the story with that?
R: That’s a true story, what happened was that the Wu Tang album was scheduled to be released in September, but we went on tour so it took longer to finish the record, then we thought October but there was more touring (laughs), the time I put aside for the record wasn`t enough time for everyone to do what they gotta do, so the record kept getting pushed, then the record was meant to get pushed and was meant to be released November, but there were sample issues, making a record is different from the old days, nowadays they got the producer to sign 50 pieces of paper, which I don`t even understand yo, but you gotta go through with this but then we finally got to December the 4th nobody was aware, well I wasn’t aware, Steve Rifkind wasn`t aware I think half of the Wu Tang Clan were aware that Ghostface was doing a new album, he just put out an album .
S: We would of thought there was such a cohesion in the crew
R: Na, na it`s like everybody`s solo life, is there solo life, we all keep our solo life to our selves, sometimes intentionally and sometimes unintentionally, if you asked Ghostface why most of Wu Tang never knew he wasn’t bringing out an album he wouldn`t give you a good reason cos he`d be like I thought they knew, because that`s how Ghost is, if you call him a hundred times you aint gonna get to talk to him, he even says how Ol Dirty Bastard became Ol Dirty Bastard because of his name he feels like he became Ghost, his moms can`t find him sometimes you know what I mean (laughs). But to cut a long story short the dates did collide and at one point Steve Rifkind as executive was like yo I`m moving it , Ghost has to move his date because he felt that the solo members is never as important as the group.
S: So there`s no arguments over money or anything?
R: Na let me finish I aint gonna air it out cos I`m doing a special interview with Funkmaster Flex to air it out but I`ll give you something you can work with, so when Steve Rifkind got involved it got the point were the people in the building were making it a tug of war whether to move Ghostfaces record because the Wu Tang is a bigger campaign, so Ghost really got twist off about that, I mean really twist off to the point he went out and verbally expressed himself, so once he done that I didn`t think it was a big deal we`ll come December it aint a big deal we don`t want it to be a problem, cos it`s not a problem for us, the wise thing to do is that Ghost should have held his record till next year because he put out an album last year and it didn`t really have the same kind of success it usually does so therefore you need to take a chill pill and get your stocks back up, get this Guitar Gently Weeps video which is a big big thing for you and come back like yo it`s Ghost
S: Is there any conflicts with direction of sound though?
R: Right now it`s hard to put the finger on the conflict, right now I think it`s delusion going on, have you guys got the album?
S: Na we just got it, we aint had a chance to listen to it though.
R: Go and listen to it and let me know how you feel cos like I was telling Raekwon, it really aint about how we feeling about the album we put out albums every year, like Raekwon put an album out August 28th right called `Ice Water`, it was put out on Babygrande, he put that record out with full control of the sound, full control of what he wanted to do and he put it out, have you heard it, have you heard about it, did it make a dent to this hip hop world no, there`s many records that come out from the crew, but now it`s time for us to do this, it`s time to let the Rza be the Rza too, don`t let me not be who I am, because I let you be who you are, it`s time for everyone to play there part, but I think right now everyone’s used to playing there own part, even myself I`m used to waking up everyday and not having to do interviews and come to the UK but for the cause I`m here and if you look at it from a stand point why is only Rza here, I should be the last person here cos i already put my work in, but this is how much dedication I’ve got to Wu Tang Clan and the cause, so as far as all them rumours your hearing were gonna clear that up with a live interview cos i know what`s being said i`ve seen the youtube shit and all that(laughs). I can curse?
S: Yeah you can curse man (laughs)
R: (laughs) I didn`t know that shit motherfucker, shit motherfucker, shit(laughs)
RZA goes on to discuss the forthcoming 3rd volume from Bobby Digital, called DigiSnacks, happily featuring Baretta 9 & Reverend William Burk. The interview is lengthy & typo-laden but worth the effort. It's a couple days old--it was actually released a few days before Ghost's latest round of insanity (at this point, what could it be but publicity?). But then again it's hard to get ahold of where everyone is, if things are getting resolved or not, if the video for Heart Gently Weeps will actually get done or not, given that Rae & Ghost are two of the three major participants on that track. It's a strange time to be following the Wu this closely.
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On Wutang-corp.com there is a hopeful rumor for fans of the original version of Wolves, as previewed recently on The Wake Up Show--that the original version is the one included on US copies of 8 Diagrams. It would be something of a consolation to the 2 European bonus tracks ("Tar Pit" & "16th Chamber") which we will not be able to enjoy on our copies.
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There are now some YouTube links available of another interview with the RZA, this one performed by DJ Semtex. The feature is split into three parts, with the 2nd pertaining most to the 8 Diagrams. The other portions are available from YouTube. RZA directly addresses both Ghost & Rae, interestingly mentioning that Ghost initially chose 10 beats from 8 Diagrams to record on. & then given the sheer number of Raekwon performances on the album--how could the final product be a denouncable surprise to them? The saga continues...
That someone is Tom Breihan writing for the Village Voice, in an article called "8 Diagrams: RZA's Drug-rap Masterwork." After beginning with an apt point in regards to the vocal sample that precedes Campfire, Breihan soon arrives at
The fact that 8 Diagrams even exists is some kind of miracle, and it's even more amazing when you consider that not one song on the entire album has the faintest chance of becoming a crossover hit. 8 Diagrams is a deeply weird album, a total immersion in weed-fried mythology and willfully obscure tangled-up black psychedelia. It's clearly the album that RZA wanted to make, and recent developments show that he may have burned up all his goodwill with the rest of the group in the process.
The one thing here that I might disagree with is his sense that nothing on the album could blow up--either version of Wolves, given the right treatment, could be huge, ditto Stick Me For My Riches, perhaps even Starter. Another questionable Breihan take is his statement against the RZA as a rapper, saying that while he enjoys him on Sunshine, "I've never much liked RZA as a rapper because he always sounded totally content to ignore his own beats." This is an oft repeated opinion--at least distaste for RZA on the mic, if not for that precise reason--that continually makes no sense to me. Bobby Digital is one thing, but RZA's mid-nineties performances on tracks such as 4th Chamber, Assassination Day, After the Smoke Is Clear, Windpipe, '96 Recreation, Mr Sandman, Diesel & Wu-Gambinos are as forcefully interesting as anything in Wu history. But then Breihan does correctly note Method Man's incredible performance on the album, & then continues to praise the record as a whole:
The things that Raekwon doesn't like about 8 Diagrams are the things that make it something like a masterpiece. At least during the recording of the album, all the Wu guys seemed to realize how great they sound over RZA's bent orchestral beats, and they stepped it up accordingly. And even if RZA never manages to get these guys back under his spell, the end result may be worth it. It's going to take a long, long time to untangle 8 Diagrams, but even a few days after it leaked, it's pretty evident that we won't be hearing another rap record this bent and fascinating anytime soon.
Check out the above video featuring RZA's recent conversation with Tim Westwood on UK Radio. The interview proves very insightful into the Abbot's current mindstate in regards to the impending 8 Diagrams, & he directly responds to Raekwon's recent negative comments. The quotables from the RZA are too numerous & he becomes quite animated a few minutes in, finishing with a flourish in which he forcefully insists that he neither owes nor has owed money to anyone. Interesting bits are all over the video, one of the most interesting being the fact that it took GZA a few weeks to really appreciate the album, but he now loves it. RZA's comment about how his Wu-Tang presence differs from his Bobby Digital persona (vis a vis his original Thug World verse) is noteworthy as well. When RZA begins naming himself "a master producer" (especially now that the album has leaked) you can't help but want to agree, perhaps begrudgingly for some. The production on the album is, if nothing else, extravagant & forceful.
Meanwhile, an overall look at the Wu's discord heading into the release of the album can be found on MTV's website. The article is pretty thorough & has some good insights into all aspects of the construction of the album, from the tension within the Clan to RZA's production techniques to some reviews of tracks. Pretty much the best overall article on the state of all things 8 Diagrams that can be found in a single friendly dose. The following section is particularly interesting:
"When you read on the Internet that Ghostface is upset that his album is coming out the same day as the Wu-Tang's album, that's because after the tour, Ghost was gone for two or three months into his own world [and] we went back into our own world," RZA added. "So nobody was in synergy of what's really happening and that's what makes the problem. You've got to build every day. ... I can honestly say, though, we did come together to do this record, and it was recorded without money. Nobody got any money in the beginning to do this record — we worked the deal out later — but to sit down and do it, we were still negotiating, but every MC came to the table. Method Man came to that studio, his lawyer called him up [and said], 'Meth, don't go to the studio.' But he came. I think Method Man gave one of his most vicious, most hungriest performances in years on this album. U-God was the first one to come to the studio and said to me, 'You know brothers are trying to say that your production is on left. Let me hear what you got, brother.' I start playing the music and he was like, 'Man, we're going to be on fire. This is beautiful.' When he said that he loved the music I was producing, I knew I was on the right track, because he's the one that that really will say, 'Fuck you.' I took it on face value that we all came because this is what we believe in. Now I think it's a little different, because all this flak is popping up, and it's like, 'Wow, I thought we were all on the same page.' "
Also, if you listened closely to 16th Chamber, the last track from the album leak, perhaps you picked up on the detail RZA reveals about the former Wu names.
That unified sentiment was the inspiration for the album's title, 8 Diagrams. RZA was watching a kung-fu movie almost 15 years ago, and the light bulb turned on. "There was a movie called 'Eight Diagram Pole Fighter,' which features a group of brothers all fighting for their country," he explained. "Their loyalty to their country and their loyalty to each other really struck a nerve to me, and when we first formed Wu-Tang Clan, we actually was called Brother Number One, Two ... Brother Number Five — that's originally how we did it. As time went on, we just took different names and abandoned that idea. For me, it's time to bring that idea back in effect, and that's what the 8 Diagrams is helping to do."
But perhaps the biggest thing to question from this video/article update is do you believe RZA when he says the differences between he & Rae have been resolved?
Ghost recently participated in a radio interview with Peter Parker, where he continued his recent campaign against the RZA. Ghost reiterated that he originally didn't plan to be on the album, he cosigned Rae's recent comments against the production on the album, & the word is that some beats may be replaced causing a delay in the release of 8 Diagrams. Until we hear this from RZA or Rifkind I wouldn't take this as gospel or even close to being true--but overall Ghost's ego seems overblown. His upcoming album Big Doe Rehab does seem promising in the fledgling stages, as it will heavily feautre Raekwon, though the single is the standard Ghost first single fare, a halfhearted stab at a radio-friendly track that is somewhat enjoyable. It will be interesting to see if the two release dates hold firm--Ghost's on Dec 4, 8 Diagrams on the 11th--without a doubt the two albums will be heavily compared both sales & quality-wise, which may give a bit of finality to the dispute between Ghost & Rae vs RZA.
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Billboard recently published an article on Raekwon's recent denounciations, with a short comment from RZA at the end:
Although he declined to address specific gripes, RZA talked to Billboard yesterday about the inherent difficulties of blending his sensibilities with those of his group mates.
"My idea with this album was to have an hour of your day be different -- you go into this other world of beats, hardcore lyrics and imagery of hip-hop," he said. "I wanted the listener to be stimulated by the music. I don't know if everybody agreed with it. Everybody has their own opinion. This is in my vision at the end of the day."
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RZA very recently appeared on The Wake Up Show, & debuted a portion of Campfire, which is, in short, incredible upon first listen. It features Meth & Ghost preceded by a long, quintessential sample from an old kung fu flick, the contents of which are pretty ironic given the current tension within the Clan. Meth can't resist referencing Justin Timberlake along with other stars, & his verse ends, then Ghost's begins, referencing their loyalty to the RZA. If we were to simply judge from the music alone, hype for 8 Diagrams would be reaching peak status--all of the tracks sound great, the chemistry within the Clan seems decent enough on record--but of course we all know better. RZA's interview on the Wake Up Show is excellent, recapping the history of the Clan, from the demo eras, to 36 Chambers, Forever, & beyond. He has a finished copy of 8 Diagrams in hand, & plays part of the first track, Campfire, which is linked by itself above. Then, Take it Back is played &, interestingly, is referred to as the first single. RZA goes on to answer some random questions about current events & general hip hop--& he even goes on to say that Ghostface is the illest current MC.
Definitely looks like Ghost & Rae's hope for some beats to be replaced is pretty futile, since The Abbot had a copy of the finished product in hand.
At the very end of the Wake Up Show interview, they go to play Stick Me For My Riches, & though the track gets cut off for lack of editing, RZA mentions that the full track features Meth, INS, RZA & GZA--which is unequivocally great news.
Initial reports said the Wu-Tang album had more outside production than usual…
The original album, we had a song from Marley, a song from DJ Scratch, a beat that was produced by Q-Tip, Easy Moe Bee. At the end of the day though, we only ended up with the Easy Moe Bee track, a Mathematics produced track and that’s it, mostly because of samples. Marley’s track, the sample wasn’t gon' clear in time. DJ Scratch, who had a crazy ill fucking song, he had a couple of songs he brought in. But the one that we finally got lyrics on, we couldn’t clear the sample. So the sample clearances kinda threw off my rhythm of plannin’ the album. At the end of the day too, the Clan didn’t verbally attack every song. Even the Q-Tip song, which I thought is a unique production, we collaborated on. We kinda wanted Ghost to spit on it, but he didn’t really set it off and shit, so we kinda put it to the side.
What’s going on with your solo joint, The Cure?
To be honest with you, I wrote The Cure. The way this world is, it kinda discouraged me. Even on the new Wu album, I tried to give you a little taste of what my heart be at as far as lyrically. And I’ve had to take some of those songs off, because sometimes the brothers just feel that sometimes the God is going in too deep. The world ain’t with the deep shit. To me, this whole album 8 Diagrams, is vegetable, son. It ain’t hamburger, it ain’t french fries either. You can’t get it at Mickey D’s. You gotta go to the health food store to get this shit. That’s what we need. It’s time for that balance. Even us as an artist, it’s hard to accept balance in my life. I know I love some ghetto, Cuban Linx shit. That’s the epitome of the Wu. At the same time, we got enough niggas, I’ll still kill and all this other shit. Who gives a fuck if you killed, how much money you got and all this other shit, yo? It’s about the heart and the mind.
It's pretty amusing that people are still asking about The Cure at all. Furthermore, I could kick whoever it is (probably Raekwon, judging from past reports) giving the veto to some of RZA's more metaphysical stylizations. After all, his lyrical prime, in some ways, was in '97, with his performances on Forever and the second Gravediggaz album, The Pick, The Sickle & The Shovel. A plethora of RZA verses would do nothing but benefit 8 Diagrams.
These tidbits are also interesting because it shows that RZA is not entirely obstinate in the making of this album, as Rae seemed to indicate in his most recent video interview. Watch Your Mouth will be missed, & I think everyone really wanted to hear the Q-Tip collab. This perhaps indicates that Thug World is also gone, which would be unfortunate.
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The following appears in a new MTV article about the Ghost & Rae situations. For the most part, the article recaps the growing fued between the participants. It ends thus:
In a 2003 reader-generated interview with Blender magazine, Method Man designated RZA's business partner, Divine, as the #1 person on his "shit list" when presented with the question. Meth claimed the Wu-Tang Management associate "took something major from me that he had no intention of giving back."
A representative for the RZA, when reached by MTV News, said the RZA's only comment in regards to the financial dispute Ghostface and Raekwon are claiming was that, "It's all his fault, and he'll take the responsibility."
So RZA continues to play the role of peacemaker while Ghost & Rae rely on complaining publicly. Regardless of the facts of the situation at hand, RZA remains the only participant acting appropriately. If only this were simply for the publicity...
...has just become (fittingly) the Ghostface & Raekwon situation.
I've been meaning to recap all of the difficulties Ghost has created for the Clan & 8 Diagrams since before this blog began. Today, Raekwon added himself to the mix with these two youtube interviews with Miss Info.
When Ghost first voiced his problems, the biggest concern for the Wu fan was that the disharmony might hamper Clan chemistry, & cause the album to suck. The fact that they weren't exactly getting along wasn't especially troublesome, because to all long-time fans of the Wu they are known as one of the most discordant collectives in all of music (which is saying a lot). The word they've always used is family, & this applies nicely, as they've had their many quarrels but always managed to come back together.
But Ghost's recent denunciation of (presumably) RZA & Divine was the most public Clan beef perhaps ever, & rightfully caused nervousness in the fanbase. While at this point it seems that the album surely won't suck, it's important to recap & examine the details of the developing dissent within the Clan. Also, when it was only Ghost who was denouncing the RZA publicly, that could be chalked up to his growing distance from the group combined with his growing ego, & somewhat easily cast aside. With Rae adding himself to the mix, this becomes somewhat more difficult.
Word of Ghost's issues with RZA coincided with the announcement of 8 Diagrams. The first reports of the fledgling project featured RZA talking about the reunited Clan minus one glaring member--Ghostface. Surely, no one should be excluded, but Ghost has been perhaps the most (musically) visible member in the past few years, & has risen from a mid-level if underappreciated member to a media & fan favorite.
The cited reason over Ghost's absense was a disagreement over money, specifically payment for the Rock the Bells tour. Incidentally, at the New York show I attended, Ghost was MIA. All of this lead to a fair amount of dubious attention & apprehension from the media & fan sectors over the 8 Diagrams project as a whole. Anxiety was soon quelled, however, as announcement came that Ghost was finally on board, & then as the first three songs leaked, wham, Ghostface was on each of them. End of story.
But of course that would be too easy, & as the 8 Diagrams release date slid back through October, through November (briefly landing on November 13th, which will be the 3rd anniversary of Dirty's death), onto December 4th, the Ghostface situation reappeared, this time much more serious. This report came from MTV's Mixtape Monday:
You'd think all would be well in the land of the Wu-Tang Clan right now. The Shaolin set finally settled on a date for their long-delayed The 8 Diagrams comeback. But if you ask Ghostface Killah, things actually aren't that sweet with the Wu. Ghost is fuming that the group's album is set to drop on the same date as his next solo album, The Big Dough Rehab. According to him, he had that date already secured, but setbacks with the Wu project planted The 8 Diagrams on the same day. And now he's not budging, he said. At all.
"I had December 4 for the longest," he explained. "But the Wu album, brothers was kinda late on doing whatever they were doing and pushed it back ... on my date. You can put this in there, I'm not [mad at] all the members. It's not based on the members, but the hierarchy at Wu-Tang Clan is on some bullshit. They trying to fuck around and make me push my album back and doing all this. But niggas ain't fucking around or give us money when we did them Wu-Tang tours. The first one, they paid us after a while, but this last one, niggas is holding onto a lot of money. And [they're] upset based on that. It's a battle right now." Ghost did not specify exactly which Wu members are the "hierarchy."
"The Big Dough Rehab is my album," he continued. "8 Diagrams is their album. But it ain't got nothing to do with the regular members. 'Cause I love Raekwon, Masta Killa, U-God, Genius, all them. But it's on right now."
Ghost said he's frustrated because his album would have been finished by now had he not chosen to be loyal and go on tour with the Clan over the summer as part of the Rock the Bells ticket with Rage Against the Machine. He even claimed Steve Rifkin, who signed the group to Loud and is releasing their latest album, put calls in to execs in hopes of stopping Ghost's album from seeing the light of day. (Inquiries made to Rifkin's office had not been returned as of press time.) In the meantime, Ghost is moving ahead with his album. The first single, "Celebrate" — featuring Kid Capri and produced by Sean C. — should be leaking soon, he said. Others set to contribute to The Big Dough Rehab are Scram Jones, Raekwon and Method Man.
Ghost is also set to drop a book, "The World According to Pretty Toney," on December 4. The book — based on skits from MTV2 — will feature Ghost dishing out his particular brand of advice on a number of topics, from gambling to education. As far as Ghost's participation on The 8 Diagrams, though, so far he's only jumped on a handful of tracks.
"I got on some of them," he said. "A few of them. ... Niggas better pay my fucking money. Matter of fact, they can keep the money — just get me out of their life right now. They can keep that money, it's all good now. I don't even wanna talk about it no more."
Such a report was public & serious enough to trouble any serious Wu fan. At this time, also, we'd only heard a few tracks, & the fate of the album was surely in doubt. This report was quickly followed by a response from RZA, also on Mixtape Monday, which revealed the current 8 Diagrams release date, December 11th, video of which follows.
The hope among Wu fans was that with the release date duel settled, Ghost might calm down again. But after a few quiet weeks, yesterday we received this report, from a show on NYC radio station Hot97:
Cipher Sounds just played Take It Back.. But before that he was talking about the drama with Ghostface & Wu... He said Ghost left him a voicemail saying, "Yo play my new record [Celebrate] ... make sure it's MY shit... not that WU-TANG shit."
Then Cipher Sounds was just saying how this hurts him, because he grew up listening to Wu, etc...
& then, almost as if it is too much at once, we get the Raekwon interviews which further elucidate the rift between RZA & the Clan.
But several facts go against Raekwon's points in these videos. He argues for quality control, saying the entire Clan is not on board with what RZA is doing musically, while the latest project Rae has helmed, the Ice Water record, is barely worth listening to. Furthermore, while Ghost's two 2006 albums had plenty of quality material on them, there were some serious mistakes, especially with personnel. I mean, how are you going to put Shawn Wiggs on a track with Redman? Also, Rae's performance on the tracks we've heard from 8 Diagrams is decidedly understated--occasionally just lazy. There are times in this interview when he acts more animated than during his verses on the album. & all of this coming from someone who can't even get a label to release the supposedly-classic followup, Cuban Linx II, to 1995's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx. & how have Raekwon's RZA-less projects been in the intervening years? Ice Cream pt 2, anyone? & what about the fact that the music we've heard so far from 8 Diagrams is pretty much undeniably dope? I could go on.
Raekwon does bring up a very interesting concept--a Clan album without the RZA. Of course, the chances of a project such as this actually happening are pretty slim at this point, given the fact that for one, most projects announced by the Wu never materialize and two, RZA is the organizer of the Clan. Without him, they wouldn't be anywhere. It seems that Raekwon remains aware of this fact, at least moreso than Ghostface, but given some of the utter shit that has appeared on Rae's recent projects, it is certainly his ears that are broken, not the RZA's. His report is troubling, but if Rae becomes the new leader of the Clan, then I am truly concerned for the welfare of the group.
Yes, the Wu-Hierarchy, especially Divine, has been notoriously shady about money owed, but such are internal issues. The music is external, & right now the music is good.
