In honor of his performing Only Built 4 Cuban Linx in its entirety at Rock the Bells 2011, Raekwon reminisced on recording one of its standout tracks. In an interview with Reebok Classics, the Chef recalled laying down “Verbal Intercourse” 
at RZA’s home studio and how he first heard of Nas.
“When Nas came aboard the Cuban Linx record, it was because when we all came out, we was familiar with certain cats in different places that was hot,” he said. “We seen him in the video and we was diggin’ him. We would hear more things in the street about this record. Actually, these girls we knew, they had a CD of the shit. It’s so crazy, they was European, that’s how you know a lot.”
After the German natives put Rae onto him, Nasir took a trip to RZA’s studio in Staten Island to record “Verbal Intercourse,” which proved to be a more difficult task than anticipated
“He came to the Island, boom, we set up, we was at RZA’s crib. Next thing you know, he just up in there vibin’, RZA’s on his RZA shit, hair out, dirty Timberlands on, eating noodles and all that, ordering mad pizza. Now we hear the ‘Verbal Intercourse’ beat, and I’m like, ‘This the track I want you on.’ He was with it, but he didn’t know what rhyme to spit. So I’m like, I’ma play the A&R role right now. ‘Go in the booth, do what you want to do.’ He was just throwing different occasional rhymes and all of that. The next thing you know, I heard the ‘Through the lights, camera and action’ and I was automatically like, ‘Stop! Do that one right there!’”
Watch the full interview below.
now this is a classic song and album
Did yall hear Nas verse on Wayne’s album? That shit crazyyyyy. Wayne was scared to jump on the track with Nas. lol
Lol
one of my fav albums you can still bump this like it drop last tuesday
nas just killed this song
Maybe the greatest song off maybe the greatest album ever.
That’s cool.
That probably has to be one of my favorite Nas verses of all time but that verse originated from Nas’ song “deja vu” which was on his demo tape Nasty Nas
OB4QL is hip hop monumental, this is one of my favourite tracks ever.
nas and wu tang are legends
there was a dope feature in XXL a few years back that covered the making of ob4cl track by track where he said the same thing.
Ghostface dropped the illest verse on there. Verbal Intercourse is still one of my alltime favorite hip hop tracks.
Nas actually spit that whole verse on his pre-illmatic mixtape on the song deja vu. Man spit that legendary verse when he was 17-18, what a genius
G O A T!!!!
True, when XXL did a play by play of the entire album years ago, Ghost said Nas had three verses written and couldn’t decide on which one to use. I wonder what the other two verses are. It’d be pretty ill to hear those versions now.
search KWESTRO on Facebook
Was in Cali when Cuban Links dropped. Since then my niggas in Texas, Tenn, etc all felt the same way I did when I heard it…..a fly ass classic album.