Raekwon Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang Turns 15 Years Old

Raekwon the Chef is one of the most respected MCs to ever pick up the mic. The Chef is part of the legendary Wu-Tang Clan. In 1993, they released one of the greatest hip hop albums called Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). The group went on to release solo projects. Less than two years later, Raekwon would release his solo project called Only Built 4 Built 4 Cuban Linx. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx is also called “The Purple Tape” because the cassette was purple. The platinum-selling album is often referred to as one of the greatest hip-hop albums ever. Raekwon would drop his Immobilarity project three years later. Immobilarity wasn’t anywhere as great as his first album, but it did go gold. The Lex Diamond Story would drop four years later, and it became Raekwon’s worst charting album.

Raekwon didn’t release another album for almost six years. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…. Pt. 2 was his fourth album, and it was his best project since his debut. The album was released on his own label called Ice H2O. A year and a half later, Raekwon returned with his fifth project called Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang. Raekwon’s Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang dropped 15 years ago today. The album debuted at number 12 on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 29,000 copies in its first week. Shaolin Vs. Wu-Tang was initially planned to be a Wu-Tang Clan group album, minus production from RZA. Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang featured more artists not in the Wu-Tang than usual. Nas, Havoc, Black Thought, Lloyd Banks, Rick Ross, Raheem DeVaughn, and Estelle made appearances. It produced three singles: “Butter Knives”, the title track, and “Rock n Roll”.

Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang is probably my second-favorite project from Raekwon. Raekwon is still putting out great music after being in the game for over thirty years. Last year, Raekwon released his eighth album, The Emperor’s New Clothes, on Mass Appeal Records. Mass Appeal Records is the label from Nas, and they dropped a slew of albums from legendary artists last year. Check out my top 5 tracks from the Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang album. After that, you can check out the track listing and stream link to the album.

Top 5 Tracks: Rich & Black, Molasses, Butter Knives, Every Soldier in the Hood, and Masters of Fate

Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang Track Listing

1. Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang
2. Every Soldier in the Hood ft. Method Man
3. Silver Rings ft. Ghostface Killah
4. Chop Chop Ninja ft. Inspectah Deck & Estelle
5. Butter Knives
6. Snake Pond
7. Crane Style ft. Busta Rhymes
8. Rock N Roll ft. Ghostface Killah, Jim Jones & Kobe
9. Rich & Black ft. Nas
10. From the Hills ft. Method Man & Raheem DeVaughn
11. Last Trip to Scotland ft. Lloyd Banks
12. Ferryboat Killaz
13. Dart School
14. Molasses ft. Ghostface Killah & Rick Ross
15. The Scroll
16. Masters of Fate ft. Black Thought
17. Wu Chant (Outro)