Friday, September 29, 2017
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Shkreli's Wu-Tang Album Is the Newest Target in Odd Virtual Coin Craze
It looks like the Game of Thrones token may not be the strangest initial coin offering of 2017, after all.
Behold Wu-Tang Coin, the digital token at the heart of a purported ICO whose sole purpose is to raise money to buy and publicly release the Wu-Tang Clan album that convicted fraudster Martin Shkreli once spent $2 million on.
The fundraising began today, according to Wu-Tang Coin’s Twitter account, which has 17 followers. Rare Music Ltd., the company behind the efforts, is seeking to raise $3 million to $4 million, according to a white paper listed on the internet. It has raised less than $1,000 so far.
Earlier this month, Shkreli reportedly sold the album -- “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” -- for just over $1 million on EBay, though it’s unclear if the sale went through.
[via BloombergTechnology]
A new Initial Coin Offering has put a cherry on top of the most frothy market of 2017. The organizers of Wu-Tang Coin, whose launch today was first spotted by Bloomberg, are proposing to raise $3 million to $4 million worth of cryptocurrency to buy the infamous Wu-Tang Clan album Once Upon a Time in Shaolin from disgraced pharmaceutical entrepreneur/convicted securities fraudster Martin Shkreli, and make it publicly available.
>> READ MORE <<
Now checkout www.wutangcoin.com
More Drama Surrounds Wu-Tang's $1 Million Album | ALL OUT SHOW
Big Big news on the Wu-Tang front. Martin Shkreli is selling Wu-Tang's Wu-Once Upon A Time In Shaolin for $1 million, half of what he spent to acquire it. Mathew "M-80" Markoff is attempting to purchase the never before heard project. He joins Jude and Justin in the studio.
Friday, September 22, 2017
RZA Says Not Doing Drake's "Wu-Tang Forever" Remix Was Missed Opportunity
If you remember way back in 2013 when Drake released the song “Wu Tang Forever,” Clan member U-God said a remix was in the works from the legendary rap group, but nearly four years after the fact we’ve yet to hear that remix, and RZA says the group missed out.
During an interview with Power 106 Thursday morning out in L.A., the Wu-Tang leader was asked if the collaboration would ever take place, and he replied “That should of happened,” before praising Drizzy and revealing that the group was on tour at the time.
RZA said Drake threw the group an alley oop with the offer for a remix but sadly, the group missed it. “First of all I want to shout Drake out. I think he threw an alley oop to us right there and I think we missed it.” The rapper also said he regrets not making the remix. While he doesn’t regret it for popularity reasons, he does wish they could have worked together because as a veteran, it’s his duty to work with the youth and “rekindle that fire” for hip-hop.
In addition to that, RZA also discussed the group’s Once Upon a Time In Shaolinalbum that was purchased for $2 million by mega pharma-douche Martin Shkreli, and a recent meeting he had with Kanye West. RZA said he spoke with ‘Ye less than 10 days ago and the Chicago rapper was in a “great place.” RZA didn’t hear any new music from him but did say the Chicago rapper was “about to get busy.”
Watch all this and more in the full 27-minute interview (below) or fast forward to the 23:42 minute mark to just hear the Drake x Wu remix talk.
If you wish to catch some of the Wu on tour, you're in luck, the NYC group is currently hitting various cities throughout the country for some live concerts. (peep dates below).
Sept. 1 – Raekwon – Kalamazoo, Mich., The Back Room
Sept. 3 – Method Man & Redman -Chicago, Ill. – Soldier’s Field
Sept. 7 – Raekwon – Buffalo, N.Y. – Waiting Room
Sept. 10 – Wu-Tang Clan – Clio, Mich. – Cannibis Cup
Sept. 15 – Ghostface Killah – Brooklyn, N.Y. – Brooklyn Bowl
Sept. 16 – Wu-Tang Clan Chicago, Ill. – Riot Fest
Sept. 17 – Raekwon – Los Angeles, Calif. – Paid Dues Fest
Sept. 22 – Raekwon – Tulsa, Okla. – The Vanguard
Sept. 24 – Raekwon – Dallas, Texas – Gas Monkey
Sept. 25 – Raekwon – Austin, Texas – Antone’s
Sept. 26 – Raekwon – San Antonio, Texas – The Korova
Oct. 6 – Raekwon – St. Paul, Minn. Amsterdam Bar & Hall
Oct. 7 – Raekwon – Los Angeles, Calif. – Globe Theater
Oct. 8 – Ghostface Killah – Atlanta, Ga. – Georgia Freight Depot
Oct. 21 – Ghostface Killah – Chicago, Ill. – Navy Pier
[via HotNewHipHop]
RZA & 36 Chambers Launch "Emperors' Treasure" Capsule Collection With The Asian Art Museum
Wu-Tang Clan member RZA and the 36 Chambers fashion brand announce a new collaboration with San Francisco's Asian Art Museum. The different parties are uniting for the Emperors’ Treasures capsule collection.
"The Asian Art Museum has given us an informative glimpse into the vast history and culture of Asian life," says RZA. "Since our company is primarily inspired by Asian culture, the exhibit intrigued us to design a line that was truly indicative of an Asian lifestyle.”
36 Chambers creative director Mustafa Shaikh adds, “We came to this partnership through our appreciation of the Emperors’ Treasures collection. Naturally, we felt it was only right that the first place we presented our collection is where we were first inspired: the Asian Art Museum.”
>> READ MORE ON ALLHIPHOPNEWS <<
Thursday, September 21, 2017
Martin Shkreli's eBay Sale Of Wu-Tang Clan's "Once Upon A Time In Shaolin" Is Bogus
When Martin Shkreli got his hands on the one and only copy (supposedly) of Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon A Time In Shaolin in 2015, it not only infuriated loyal Wu-Tang fans but also left the future of the album uncertain.
Would anyone besides Shkreli and the people who crafted it get to hear it?
There was that “first, last and only” listening session in 2015 and the recent interview Shkreli did where he nonchalantly played the 31-track album for nearly two minutes in the background, but aside from that, most people don’t know what the album sounds like.
Matt “M-Eighty” Markoff, a close Wu-Tang affiliate who has worked as an artist, A&R and executive alongside the Wu-Tang family for over 15 years, is attempting to change that. On Sunday (September 17), eBay closed the bidding for Shkreli’s rare artifact, which the infamous “Pharma Bro” had put up for auction earlier this month. It said the “winning bid”was $1,025,100.
>> READ MORE ON HIPHOPDX <<
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
Nas & Ghostface Killah’s Collabos Set The Stage For A Strong A3C (Audio)
Two of New York’s finest MCs, Nas and Ghostface Killah, have a great history of bringing out the best in each other when they’re on the same track. Both possess intricate storytelling ability, effortless wordplay, and immense street credibility. They’ve only rhymed together but a few occasions. However, the synergy is undeniable.
Their collaborations date back to the early album-making days in their respective, careers. The Queensbridge icon and Wu-Tang Clan legend will be performing as headliners at the 2017 A3C Festival in Atlanta next month. Ahead of the October 8-9 affair, Ambrosia For Heads explores the songs that these two pillars in Hip-Hop’s pantheon have come together to produce.
Mobb Deep featuring Nas, Raekwon & Ghostface Killah – “Eye For An Eye”
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
Monday, September 18, 2017
Martin Shkreli Sells That Rare Wu-Tang CD for $1 Million + UPDATE!
Only a few days after the managers of rappers U-God and Method Man of Wu-Tang Clan publicly spoke out against the legitimacy of that rare Once Upon a Time in Shaolin double CD in the possession of defamed “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli, the now convicted felon has sold the artifact for $1,025,100. As indicated in the description, Shkreli was not attempting to make this sale because he was strapped for cash, but rather wanted to rid himself of the album he felt was becoming a burden.
According to Domingo Negris, manager of U-God, the project in question is not considered to be "an authorized Wu-Tang Clan album.”
James Ellis, Method Man’s manager doubled down on the claim, adding "When we did the verses, it was for a Cilvaringz album. How it became a Wu-Tang album from there? We have no knowledge of that."
Nonetheless, Martin still managed to get the CD off his hands for almost half of the $2 million price tag with he first acquired it.
UPDATE!
Martin Shkreli’s eBay sale of Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is evidently incomplete. According to Matt “M-Eighty” Markoff, whose tenure in the Hip Hop game is decades deep, Shkreli was unable to officially finalize the sale before being booked into a federal Brooklyn jail last week.
The good news? Once Markoff, who routinely works with Wu-Tang, is able to secure the album, he plans to share it with the rest of us.
“I was the second highest bidder at 1,025,000 and he did not make arrangements for the sale before being arrested again,” Markoff told HipHopDX. “If he has any release time before his ultimate conviction and sentencing, that is when he and I will be finalizing the purchase agreement off eBay.”
He added, “I will be releasing the album to the world at large. ”
As indicated by eBay’s website, the bidding for Once Upon A Time In Shaolin closed on September 15 and a bid of $1,025,100 was deemed “the winning bid.”
So far, Shkreli’s signature has not made it to the paperwork.
[via Hot New HipHop & HipHopDX]
GZA - "The Spark" [Official Audio]
PURCHASE / STREAM "THE SPARK": https://fanlink.to/gza-spark You are now listening to "The Spark" by GZA/Genius, available worldwide via Babygrande Records. For more info on GZA, please visit: https://twitter.com/therealgza https://www.facebook.com/theGZA https://www.youtube.com/user/RealGZAG...
Friday, September 15, 2017
Martin Shkreli May Have Paid $2 Million for a Wu-Tang Album That Isn't Actually a Wu-Tang Album
Since winning Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin with a $2 million bid in an auction two years ago, Martin Shkreli has done just about everything to remind us that he's the one in possession of the most expensive album ever sold.
After promising to release the album if Donald Trump won the presidential election last November, Shkreli played a few snippets during a live stream. In one of the clips on a YouTube account called "Best of Martin Shkreli," ten minutes of Shaolin is playingin the background of an interview. But, in a surprising twist, two people linked to the Wu-Tang Clan told Bloomberg through their respective managers that the 31-track double CD in Shkreli's possession may not really be a Wu-Tang album.
“It’s not an authorized Wu-Tang Clan album,” Domingo Neris, manager of rapper U-God, claimed. "It never was.” Method Man's manager James Ellis also questioned whether Shaolin was a true Wu-Tang album. "When we did the verses, it was for a Cilvaringz album," he said. "How it became a Wu-Tang album from there? We have no knowledge of that."
Killa Sin, a member of Wu-Tang's extended family, recalls recording sessions with producer Cilvaringz in New York, but he never got the impression that he was working on a Wu-Tang album. "The way he presented it was it was going to be basically his album, and he wanted me to do some work for him," Killa Sin said.
With so many people questioning the validity of the $2 million album, Shkreli must have heard it back to front in order to confirm that what he spent so much money on was the real deal, right? Well, when he put the album on eBay earlier this month, Shkreli wrote in the description, "I have not carefully listened to the album."
Thursday, September 14, 2017
Shkreli ordered jailed for online bounty on Hillary Clinton's hair
(Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Wednesday ordered Martin Shkreli to be jailed while he awaits sentencing for securities fraud, citing a Facebook post in which the former drug company offered a $5,000 reward for a strand of Hillary Clinton's hair.
Shkreli, who had been free on $5 million bail since his December 2015 arrest, was silent and stony-faced as U.S. marshals led out of U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto's Brooklyn courtroom.
Matsumoto ruled that Shkreli's Sept. 4 post, made shortly before Clinton embarked on a book tour, showed he posed a danger to the public. She rejected arguments by Shkreli's lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, that the post was protected free speech.
"This is a solicitation of assault in exchange for money," the judge said. "That is not protected by the First Amendment."
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
Masta Killa’s New Album Will Be A Wu-Tang, Prodigy & Redman Affair
Later this month, Wu-Tang Clan member Masta Killa will release his fourth album, Loyalty Is Royalty. The Brooklyn, New York veteran remains a Nature Sounds artist, the label with whom he released his acclaimed solo debut, 2004’s No Said Date.
The September 29 release features two fallen affiliates of Jamel Irief: Prodigy and Sean Price. Additionally, GZA, Method Man, RZA, Inspectah Deck, and Cappadonna appear. Redman joined Meth on lead video single “Therapy.”
Last month, Ambrosia For Heads premiered the “Now You See Me” version of second single “OGs Told Me”:
The Loyalty Is Royalty tracklist:
1. Intro
2. Return Of The Masta Killa (feat. Young Dudas and Cappadonna)
3. Loyalty Is Royalty (R.I.F. – Rapping Is Fundamental) (feat. AB & JR)
6. Wise Words By The RZA (feat. RZA)
7. Trouble
8. Skit
9. Down With Me (feat. Sean Price)
10. Tiger And The Mantice (feat. Inspectah Deck and GZA)
11. Real People (feat. Prodigy and KXNG Crooked)
12. Flex With Me (feat. Chanel Sosa)
13. Calculated (feat. Ra Stacks and Nick Guns)
14. Noodles Pt. 1
15. Noodles Pt. 2
16. Outro
True to Killa’s ’90s roots, the LP will be available on vinyl, CD, and cassette tape too.
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Monday, September 11, 2017
Friday, September 8, 2017
The 50 Best Ghostface Killah Songs
Ghostface Killah turned 47 in 2017, but he is still one of hip-hop music's most vibrant talents. The Almighty GFK has been the most consistent wordsmith out of the Wu-Tang stable from the time he introduced himself to the rap world on “Da Mystery of Chessboxin.’” Tony Starks has been hitting us over the head with amazing verses and songs for nearly 25 years now; this decade alone has seen him drop collaboration albums with his Wu compatriots Method Man and Raekwon, his fellow New Yorker Sheek Louch, the Canadian jazz trio BADBADNOTGOOD, and Adrian Younge, twice.
>> CHECKOUT THE LIST HERE <<
Thursday, September 7, 2017
Wednesday, September 6, 2017
Martin Shkreli Is Selling Wu-Tang’s “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin” Album on Ebay
Remember back in December of 2015 when the mega pharmacy-douche Martin Shkreli bought the unreleased Wu-Tang album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, for $2 million dollars? Well it turns out that after a couple legal woes, including two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiring to commit securities fraud, the NYC millionaire is looking to get rid of the project now.
On Tuesday, Martin started an auction for the project on Ebay, which has already reached $55,000 USD in just a few hours. With nine days left remaining to bid on the auction, Martin said he may cancel this sale at any time, and may even “break the album in frustration.” He also added that half of the sale proceeds will go to medical research in the description of the ebay post.
The full description of the Ebay post read as following:
“I decided to purchase this album as a gift to the Wu-Tang Clan for their tremendous musical output. Instead I received scorn from at least one of their (least-intelligent) members, and the world at large failed to see my purpose of putting a serious value behind music. I will be curious to see if the world values music nearly as much as I have. I have donated to many rock bands and rappers over the years to ensure they can continue to produce their art when few others would. At any time I may cancel this sale and I may even break this album in frustration. I will donate half of the sale proceeds to medical research. I am not selling to raise cash--my companies and I have record amounts of cash on hand. I hope someone with a bigger heart for music can be found for this one-of-a-kind piece and makes it available for the world to hear. Upon sale, I will represent & warranty any copies of the music I have will be destroyed. I have not carefully listened to the album, which is a double CD. There is also a finely crafted booklet which you can read about elsewhere. I will pay legal expenses for the buyer up to $25,000 to ensure the final purchase details are mutually agreeable.”
Check out the eBay post yourself right here. Hopefully the sale of this album means that we’ll finally get to hear it in the near future. Fingers crossed.
[via HotNewHipHop]