Wu-Tang Clan

WU-TANG CLAN

Formed: 1992, New York, New York

Members: GZA/Genius, vocals (Gary Grice); Ghostface Killah, vocals (Dennis Coles; born 9 May 1970); Inspectah Deck, vocals (Jason Hunter); Method Man, vocals (Clifford Smith; born 1 April 1971); Ol' Dirty Bastard, vocals (Russell Jones; born Brooklyn, New York, 9 May 1970); Raekwon, vocals (Corey Woods; born 12 January 1968); RZA/Prince Rakeem, vocals, producer (Robert Diggs; born 5 July 1969).

Genre: Hip-Hop

Hit songs since 1990: "Protect Ya Neck," "C.R.E.A.M."

Hip-hop had seen large confederations of artists prior to the Wu-Tang Clan, most famously the Native Tongues Family, which included the Jungle Brothers, De La Soul, and A Tribe Called Quest, as well as the Juice Crew, assembled by producer Marley Marl and including Biz Markie, Big Daddy Kane, and Kool G Rap. However, the talent-stocked Wu-Tang Clan were unlike any alliance that came before them, able to work as effectively en masse as they were on any individual level. Both as a larger unit and as solo artists, the Clan produced more commercially and critically acclaimed albums in the 1990s than any other comparable group.

The Clan's two main leaders—producer RZA and rapper Genius, also known as GZA—were both recording artists prior to the formation of Wu-Tang Clan. The Genius previously had a quiet career on the Cold Chillin' label, boasting one modest hit in 1990 with "Pass the Bone." The RZA was previously known as Prince Raheem and had been signed to Tommy Boy. From there, these two collected talent from around New York, especially the pair's home neighborhood of Staten Island. Given the size of the clan and the differing contributions of its members, it is difficult to delineate exactly who was in the group but the main team included Raekwon, Ghost-face Killah, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, and Ol' Dirty Bastard, all of whom would go on, in unprecedented fashion, to release solo albums.

The Wu-Tang Clan's debut, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993), is largely a group affair. Only Method Man's self-titled song gives exclusive attention to any one member. On the album's other songs, including their first single, "Protect Ya Neck," rhyme duties are split between different configurations of Clan rappers, all of whom have their particular styles and strengths but overall seem equally matched in ability. Their chemistry as a group is explicit on songs like "7th Chamber" and "Can in Da Front," where Wu-Tang Clan builds a lyrical phalanx as each member inspires the performance of the other.

The Wu-Tang sound—derived from their lyrical styles as well as RZA's moody, grimy production—was rough, dark, and stark, a notable contrast to the lustrous sound of Dr. Dre's "G Funk" style, Teddy Riley's pop-influenced New Jack Swing, and the jazzy aesthetics of A Tribe Called Quest. They mirrored this ruggedness in their rhymes with the forcefulness of their delivery and the street perspective of their writing. Though many of the songs on Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) are built around braggadocio, songs like "C.R.E.A.M." and "Can It Be All So Simple?" are inspired by the realities of life within underclass projects and on urban street corners. These deromanticized perspectives on death, crime, and violence only enhanced the group's stature for rap fans looking for grittier reality-based narratives and attitudes.

Following Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), many of the Clan members worked on their own solo albums, including the GZA, Method Man, Ol' Dirty Bastard, and Raekwon. The Clan reassembled to release a double-album, Wu-Tang Forever (1997), whose immense, twenty-plus song length spoke as much to the group's ego as to their abilities. Though it has some impressive offerings, especially "Triumph," an informal sequel to "Protect Ya Neck," the album's sheer length allows for none of the efficiency of Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). Wu-Tang Clan once again waited several years to release their next group album, The W (2000), though they quickly followed with Iron Flag (2001) a year later. Both albums have their share of strong material, but within the three years between Wu-Tang Forever and The W, hip-hop had undergone another sea change toward a more polished, pop sound (largely inspired by Sean "Puffy" Combs) that had made their gritty aesthetic less appealing. Though they seemed invincible in the mid-1990s, by the beginning of the new decade, the reign of the Clan seemed over though individual members such as Method Man and Ghostface Killah continued to thrive.

SELECTIVE DISCOGRAPHY:

Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (Loud/RCA, 1993).

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