GZA of Wu

Wu-Tang Clan were the antidote to Dr. Dre's G-funk domination, offering a distinctly grimy, hardcore alternative to the West Coast sound with their 1993 debut, "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)." Formed in Staten Island, New York, US, the Clan developed into a sprawling collection of artists, rooted by RZA's musical direction and vision. Made up of roughly nine members, each artist delivered their own persona and style, with the crew being started by GZA and Ol' Dirty Bastard, soon expanding to include Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, U-God, Masta Killa, and Inspectah Deck.

Their debut release forged a new sound in hip-hop, through darkly funky soundscapes full of a sense of eerie, urban-dystopian menace which grounded their seamless, gritty vocal attack loaded with violent martial arts imagery. Achieving widespread critical acclaim and commercial success, Wu-Tang's sound became instantly recognizable which would go on to influence countless artists across genres subsequently.

Following their debut, the various artists embarked on a host of solo ventures, with five of the crew landing solo contracts on the strength of the single "C.R.E.A.M" alone. The may artists of Wu-Tang became household names, collaborating with many others in the industry and finding their new projects receiving the same success as their collective recordings.

In 1997, Wu-Tang Clan reunited together to work on their second album, the double-disc "Wu-Tang Forever," finding huge anticipation for the release. The album went straight to number one in the charts and sold over 600,000 copies in its first week. Wu-Tang Clan became a branded franchise, expanding its roster of artists to include new members and to aid young protégés gain their first exposure. The collective became a huge business, dominating the airwaves. Meanwhile, Ol'Dirty Bastard's behavior began to become erratic and a series of incidents in 1998 left the rapper incarcerated and in and out of rehab for drug addiction.

Following "Wu-Tang Forever," the many artists released further solo albums and projects, although they were unable to maintain such high levels of fervor around these releases, although they were still widely critically acclaimed. The Wu-Tang Clan project was perhaps spread too thin, with the vast number of ventures causing inconsistency and over-dilution. In 2000, the Clan returned with a new effort, "The W," which was a more focused offering, a release marred by Ol'Dirty Bastard's continuing erratic behavior that was quickly spiraling out of control.

It was only a year later that a new Wu-Tang release arrived, with their fourth record, "Iron Flag." Solo projects continued subsequently, with the next release for the collective only being the 2004 live album, "Disciples of the 36 Chambers." Sadly that same year, Ol' Dirty Bastard suffered a fatal heart attack, with this release being his last.

In 2007, new Clan material surfaced, with "8 Diagrams," which suffered from criticism from GZA and Raekwon about RZA's chosen direction. Another bout of solo albums followed before the 2011 compilation, "Legendary Weapons" was released. To huge anticipation, in 2013, a new studio album was announced, planned for 2013 to commemorate their 20th anniversary. However, the album did not appear until 2014, when it was finally released on Warner Bros., titled "A Better Tomorrow." Alongside this album, Wu-Tang Clan also made music history, after announcing their creation of "Once Upon a Time in Shaolin," a secret album that was only to have one copy pressed, to be sold to the highest bidder, likely to be housed in a museum, with RZA suggesting the music would not be available for another seven years. An artistic statement never before created in popular music.