“I seen it all, done it all and still doin’ it.Who gave you crime action stories, live from the bricks?” – “My Corner” Raekwon (ft. Lil’ Wayne)
The Wild, which is currently sitting at an impressive 80/100 on the review aggregator Metacritic, is Raekwon’s first album to feature zero Wu-Tang members- but don’t worry, things are all good with the Clan!
As Raekwon says, “We always get a chance to do records with the crew and give you that same formula, but I like stepping out of the box to still show my individuality”.
Although lacking any Clan members, the album does have appearances from Lil Wayne, CeeLo Green, G-Eazy, and P.U.R.E. among others. Raekwon seems particularly excited about his collaboration with P.U.R.E, saying “I ain’t seen a new cat come in a long time that can rhyme his ass off and be intellectual at the same time. Very interesting kid, I want you to check for him.”
That song with P.U.R.E., called M&N, has a video on YouTube which you can check out right now if you click here. Without spoiling the concept, the somewhat abstract title makes sense the second you hear the first few bars.
The video is also very cinematic, which makes perfect sense considering Raekwon’s status as a mafioso rap pioneer renowned for his street stories. As he says, “I like taking people places. That’s why every album is like the cinematography of my life, my world… I love painting pictures”.
But they don’t only talk about the new album. They also speak on the current state of hiphop where beats are king and lyrics don’t seem to even matter anymore, but Raekwon’s views on that may surprise you as he says, “A lot of people are driven from the beat so if the beat sounds good, and it goes with the vibe and energy of the room, it’s almost a win for them. I like beats, so I can’t really hate on how they do their thing. I just know it’s so different than what I’m used to”.
All in all, it’s a great interview with a bonafide hiphop legend, as Craig Ex and Raekwon smoke some great chronic at Weeds South Van.
Check it out!