Celebrating Illmatic and Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) 20 Years Later

Before I get started, I want everyone to know that this is not going to be a line for line, verse by verse analysis of two of the greatest Hip-Hop Albums of all time. With that being said, it's time to celebrate!!!

Let's be honest here, people. 1993-94 represents the best era of Hip-Hop. ?uestlove, front man of the legendary Roots, said that in 1993, when he heard The Wu-Tang Clan's debut album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), that it was "the greatest day ever". Many of Hip-Hop's greatest MC's and producers look at Nas' debut Illmatic as the bar for every MC that ever touched a mic after that. You'd be hard pressed to find anyone that loves Hip-Hop to disagree with those sentiments of both albums.

If you would've asked be back then, when I was 13 years old, how do I think these albums would be viewed 20 years later, I probably would've said something like "they won't ever get their proper due." Funny thing is, that would not have been based on what I thought about the albums but on how I thought the culture was viewed. To be honest with you, I didn't even realize the impact these albums had on me until I heard Raekwon and Ghostface Killah spit fire with the rest of the Clan on Only Built for Cuban Linx in 1996. On the track 'Verbal Intercourse', Nas lends a hand to his Shaolin Island counterparts, opening up with "Through the lights, cameras and action, glamour glitters and gold/ I unfold the scroll, plant seeds to stampede the globe...". It was then that I realized, Nas was probably the greatest MC of my generation and Wu Tang was the greatest Hip-Hop crew ever. Looking back, I had no idea, then, how these two albums would impact me or the culture I've grown to love.

Simply put, no other debut albums have had the initial impact that these two have had (if I had to pick a second, it would be Kendrick Lamar's debut Good Kid, M.A.A.D City). And I feel like there has not been a better solo debut than Illmatic or group debut than Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), which introduced a gritty, raw and in your face sound that spawned producer RZA's trademark style. It also introduced the world to nine, count them, nine different MC's at the top of their lyrical games. That feat, in and of itself, is remarkable and probably will never be repeated. Illmatic, arguably, is the most influential album in Hip-Hop. Not only did it feature Nas dropping some of the illest verses ever heard then and since, it featured probably the greatest lineup of producers at that time contributing the greatest compilation of beats ever for a debut album. Nas' lyrics left no listener wanting, and the accompanying tracks enhanced those vocals even further. Illmatic was a look into the life of a young Black kid from one of the most notorious housing projects in the United States, let alone Queens, New York. Queensbridge Projects was the backdrop to the canvas that was Illmatic, and the album became sort of a holy grail to enthusiasts of Hip-Hop and those who could relate to what the young man was talking about. Nas delivered this commentary of sorts like he was sitting on a bench on the courtyard, telling us all what real life was like. There was no glamour, no glitz, no 'how fly am I' bravado. Illmatic was, simply, ill.

Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), to me, appropriately preceded Illmatic in that it brought a different lyrical approach than what Hip-Hop had been known for up to the point of its release. It encompassed what pretty much every person growing up in the 'hood loved. Above all else, the kung-fu flick overlay the RZA crafted resonated with everyone. The personas that each Clansman embodied resonated with the comic book heroes their listeners grew up cherishing, way before they took on monikers such as Marvel Comics heroes Johnny Blaze a.k.a Ghost Rider and Tony Starks' Iron Man. Hailing from Staten Island, a world of it's own across from the more glamorized island of Manhattan, they tapped into a culture that was theirs and theirs only. That album introduced listeners to a new type of slang, steeped in 5 Percent and Nation of Islam teachings. Many of Wu-Tang's early fans didn't realize that when Raekwon would say "Aye yo, god!" or when Ghostface would say "Yo, sun!" that these were references to the spiritual teaching that they all were influenced by. This wasn't by design, yet it became a trademark of a group who set out from the jump to dominate the landscape of the culture at that time. By the time Nas' released his project, listeners already knew change was on the horizon. Today, Wu-Tang is synonymous with real Hip-Hop with a cult following that rivals that of any other group in music history and has no contemporaries in Hip-Hop. Wu-Tang, apparently, really is forever.

But what makes these two albums great, to me at least, is their timelessness. Put Illmatic up against any and every solo hip hop release since its debut in 1994 and it holds up. Jay Z dropped a classic debut with Reasonable Doubt, but it's heavily influenced by Nas' initial opus (see 'Dead Presidents', for example). Even Nas himself has been unable to duplicate the fanfare and reverence Illmatic spawned, the closest being his 2001 release of Stillmatic, but that was due more to his long awaited response to Jay Z's calling him out and starting one of the more memorable beefs in Hip-Hop history. Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) really has no rival in that its release was a calculated move by the group to introduce nine very different artists at the same time to set each member up for individual success later. As a group, they were a united front that could not be matched and would never be matched. Many individual, already accomplished, MC's tried to imitate what RZA and Wu-Tang did, but it was often a well established artist like Busta Rhymes, Fat Joe or Ludacris trying to use his name to get his crew on. Wu-Tang used their collective name to negotiate deals after the world knew who they were and what each MC could do. Again, no other debut releases have been so instrumental in forming not only the landscape for the culture, but defining it as well. Any MC that is worth anything these days will tell you that Nas and Wu-Tang influenced their music in some way. Wu-Tang also picked up where Naughty by Nature left of as far as marketing and branding with Wu-Wear, paving the way for brands such as Sean John and Rocawear to reach the heights they have attained today. While Wu-Wear never achieved what these brands did as far as notoriety on the business side, RZA consistently kept the Wu-Tang brand relevant and now has seen resurgence in brand recognition due to the groups cult following. 

Both of these albums had an initial impact that some may say wasn't immediately realized. I disagree with that sentiment but I understand that the true worth of anything valuable usually isn't appreciated for what it is right away. For me it wasn't until Hip-Hop music started to take a turn for more diluted 'pop-rap' that I grew to appreciate the quality of these albums and the artists behind them. That era represents to me what early Jazz and Blues represents to music lovers who remember Miles Davis at his peak or Charlie Parker, Muddy Waters, Billie Holiday or Nina Simone, just to name a few of my personal favorites. My father talks about these artists like I talk about Nas and Wu-Tang. They are revered because they represent something that doesn't get lost with time. 20 years later, I still find myself 'chasing the dragon' as it were, looking for something that can make me feel like I did when I heard these Hip-Hop legends  for the first time. Sadly, the only time I feel that is when I'm listening to their albums again and again. Nas' latest release Life is Good brought back some of those old feelings. While Wu-Tang, as solo artists and as a collective, are finding trouble as of late trying to recapture their old glory days on wax, their impact is still felt when they perform at events such as Coachella and The annual Rock the Bells concerts. The Wu-Tang logo is one of the more recognizable images of this generation and this is evident every time I wear one of my Wu t-shirts, buttons or wooden beaded necklaces. When people who typically have never listened to a rap song but recognize the symbol of the greatest rap group ever, there is no denying their place in society, let alone in Hip-Hop culture. So here's to Illmatic and Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), 20 years later. Ya'll never sounded so good!!!