Raekwon Says Collab With Jay Z Is “Tucked” Away & Discusses “F.I.L.A.” Album Release

Rumors of a collaboration between New York City emcees Raekwon and Jay Z began to circulate immediately after a picture of the two in the studio together made the rounds online last year. According to Raekwon, he did collaborate with Jay on a record that day, but is unsure of what the Brooklyn rapper has in store for the duo’s collaboration.

The Wu-Tang spitter spoke on the collab during an interview with DJ Whoo Kid on Sunday (February 2). He also suggested that Jay Z may have wanted Ghostface Killah on the track as well.

“I guess he tucked it or whatever. And you know, I guess he got a plan or whatever,” Raekwon said. “I don’t really know. You know what I mean? I just know that at the end of the day we still got things that we discussing that we gon’ make happen. I don’t know what happened with the record though, you know…I don’t know what happened cause I know I guess he wanted to have Starks on it too. You know how it is when you got your vision and you want it to be a certain way. It didn’t come fully into fruition though, but it was still a lot of great love though.”

In regards to his own project, F.I.L.A. (Fly International Luxurious Art), Raekwon says he’s currently eyeing a release this May. According to the rapper, issues regarding sample and artist clearances prevented the LP from being released last year.

“We shooting for May right now. We got like an early May release,” he said. “Like May 6 or May 11 or some shit like that. So, I feel good though. It was just all about making sure that the shit is together, you know what I mean? You know how clearances and artist clearances and label—it’s one thing to have a relationship with the artist, but then you gotta deal with these labels…All that shit and really just making sure it’s finesse, man. You know I ain’t gon’ never give niggas something that I feel is half ass. No matter how much I wanted it to come out last year it wasn’t the time though, so I let Allah just say when he felt it was ready.”

Raekwon also offered his thoughts on the controversy surrounding Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ four wins at last month’s Grammy Awards. He credited Macklemore for calling Kendrick’s project the better album and revealed that both artists are winners in his book.

“I fuck with Macklemore too though,” the Staten Island rapper said. “You know what I mean? I respect Macklemore for even just going back and really looking at the demographics of how that Grammy shit work. We know and all that he’s the popular—more popularity based on the fact of how he came in. But he still recognized that Kendrick—he felt Kendrick had a better Hip Hop album than him. So, for a man to just feel in his heart that he feel like he ain’t the winner or however the case may be, I respect him for that because niggas would have questioned that like ‘Yo, hold up.’ You know what I mean? But he was a man to admit that…So, in all reality both of those niggas won to me, man.”

In a previous interview, Raekwon referred to F.I.L.A. as a “lifestyle project” before stating that he was nearly finished with the album.

“That one is a lifestyle project. It’s gonna be hot. I just got to the level of finishing it up and I’m feeling real good about this,” Raekwon said during an interview with Hip Hop Since 1987 last May.

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