1993 is, and forever will be, one of the best years hip hop will ever see. Among some of the legendary releases we were blessed with that year, we heard: ’93 Til, Reachin’ (A New Refutation Of Time And Space), 19 Naughty III, Midnight Marauders and Doggy style; but the album that kicked off an undeniable movement throughout East and West coast alike and remains a staple in hip hop legend today, was Wu Tang Clan’s 36 Chambers.
It’s hard to believe it’s been 20 years since we were first knocked back by the lyrical prowess and street reputable sound of Wu. Since The RZA, The GZA, Old Dirty Bastard, Inspectah Deck, Raekwon The Chef, U God, Ghostface Killah, Method Man and the understated Masta Killa took control of the mic, they’ve been nothing but rolling stones ever since.
With five studio albums under their belts and a cornucopia of independent projects surrounding the Wu empire, the question still stands: when will the fabled sixth studio album, A Better Tomorrow, finally be released? Well my friends, I’m here to announce that our patience may finally be rewarded.
It’s been seven long years since the whole Clan dropped their last full-length studio album, 8 Diagrams, which left a lot of listeners and critics uneasy. The album was filled with experimentation and wandering concepts, leaving us to ponder whether Wu had lost touch with their streetwise musical roots. Not to say that there’s anything wrong with artistic evolution, but the world also heard that the new sound was creating animosity within the group.
Whether the hostility was malicious or constructive will remain within the members of the Clan, but one thing is certain: the seven year hiatus resulted in an explosion of individual creativity which only added to Wu Tang Clan’s reputation and dynasty.
Staying strong within the hip hop limelight, we saw Wu’s dignitary, RZA conquer the cinematic world through scoring and directing, eventually starring and releasing his own movie, The Man With The Iron Fists. We also heard critically acclaimed albums from U God, Raekwon, Ghostface and Method Man, keeping the Wu Tang image strong, apparent and relevant to the times and evolution of hip hop as we know it.
So what’s going on with ‘A Better Tomorrow?’ Originally slated for a July 2013 release, it quickly began to take on a ‘Detox reputation.’ Referring to Dr. Dre’s mythical wrap-up album, ten years in the making, A Better Tomorrow was starting to show signs of becoming another fable in the hip hop community.
On November 22nd we were finally given some official word on the highly anticipated 20-year anniversary project. The RZA tweeted that the album was 45 days away from completion – a promise that inevitably fizzled away with reports of hold-ups in the studio and some reluctance within the group to record. Following another brief period of confusion, The RZA tweeted January 4th, and again on January 6th, that ‘A Better Tomorrow’ is still on the schedule and we can expect a 2014 drop.
Rumours are quickly flooding the internet and the public has, for some reason, taken it upon themselves to announce ‘A Better Tomorrow’ will be released some time before May. Or so they say.
Although there is still no official word, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. This past Friday the Wu Tang Clan dropped a 50 track mixtape with a song listing covering everything from 1993 to 2014. Tracks include everything from their full-crew rhymes of 36 Chambers, to solo projects such as Redman and Method Man’s Blackout, to tracks notoriously sampled from the Wu catalogue, such as Gang Starr’s You Know My Steez. (Link for download below)
Even with the release of ‘A Better Tomorrow’ uncertain, Wu certainly isn’t leaving us with nothing. With the 20 Year Mixtape serving as an enticing hint at a follow-up release, ‘A Better Tomorrow’ isn’t the only Wu project we have to look forward to. We can expect to be hearing a couple new Method Man projects soon, with a release just around the corner of the ‘Meth Lab Mixtape,’ supposedly dropping this month, and a release for Raekwon’s new album, ‘Fly International Luxurious Art,’,slated for May 2014.
It’d be nice for a little more information, but for the time being, you can watch the video of one of the few occasions where a future album is publicly discussed with the whole clan. And as seen in the video, although their fearless leader and the man expected to fulfill A Better Tomorrow’s promise is in it, don’t expect much from him in interview – with the clan just finishing a set at Bonnaroo, he was a little busy celebrating.
Even with all the questions revolving the Wu status, one answer is for certain: whether ‘A Better Tomorrow’ comes out next week, next month or next year –we will wait.
ODB Rest In Peace. Wu Tang Forever.
Download 20 Years of Wu Tang Mixtape:
http://wudisciples.blogspot.ca/2014/03/20-years-of-wu-tang-new-mixtape.html
