Ghostface Killah released his second solo studio album Supreme Clientele in 2000 to critical acclaim. With production from his Wu-Tang Clan brethren RZA, Inspectah Deck, Mathematics and more, the 21-track project is often heralded as some of Ghostface’s best work.
From the Raekwon-assisted “Apollo Kids” to “Buck 50” with Redman, Method Man, Cappadonna and Masta Killa, each song on the album put a spotlight on the insane rhyming talent pulsing through the veins of everyone who contributed.
As RZA was discussing his new Cadillac venture during a recent interview with HipHopDX, he mentioned he put the Escalade’s state-of-the-art AKG Studio Reference System through the coveted car test and stressed how important it is to have a high quality stereo.
“If it bumps in the whip, it’s going to bump everywhere else,” he explained to DX. “Especially in my phase of Hip Hop, you know what I mean? It was all about the Jeeps, the boomin’ systems, the long road trips — all those different vibes took place in the car, even hanging out with your shorty.
“A lot of things took place in the car. Hip Hop eventually moved and became more club, but in the foundational days of it, it was just having that phat tape in your car with a nice system. If it sounded good there, you was good.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyAAnE9Rpr0
Then, almost as if a lightbulb went off, RZA remembered Redman insisting on writing his Supreme Clientele verses in a car.
“When Wu-Tang had success and we built our first studio, we would make the songs and then bring it downstairs to the car and play it in there,” he continued. “If sound bopping in there, you know you was good. Especially on an album like Supreme Clientele.
“I feel like almost every song, like when we finished that, we took it down. I’ll never forget when Redman came to the studio, he actually wrote his verse in the car. We put the beat on tape and he’s just going to take the beat downstairs and write the verse in the car.”
With bars such as, “Pull the mask so you know it’s me/And your weed got more seeds than ODB/Can’t smoke with ya, watch Ghost tie a rope to ya/Def and Wu will open ya,” the car clearly treated Redman right. Since then, he’s evolved into one of Hip Hop’s most celebrated MCs and has plans to unleash his highly anticipated follow-up to Muddy Waters, the aptly titled Muddy Waters 2.
Wu-Tang Clan's RZA Aiming For 'Cadillac' Quality Sound On Upcoming Bobby Digital Album
Elsewhere in the interview, RZA touched on his upcoming DJ Scratch-produced album Saturday Afternoon Kung-Fu Theatre, the second season of Wu-Tang: An American Saga and Wu-Tang Clan’s upcoming show at Red Rocks Amphitheater with the Colorado Symphony and Outkast’s Big Boi later his summer, their first show since the COVID-19 pandemic began its global rampage.
“I’m looking forward to just having fun,” he said, “and taking all that quarantine energy we had that was bottled up and letting it come out in a positive way.”
The Wu-Tang Clan Experience goes down on August 13 in Morrison, Colorado. Find tickets here and revisit Supreme Clientele below.
Dope article! Funny about Reggie. Supreme Clientele is most definitely among the top ranks of the Wu’s second wave of solo efforts, and arguably among the best all solo efforts around.
ppl sleep on fishscale shit is bananas every track banger
Yes it IS!!!
Correct, the neo tracks a bit you know, but catchy non the less, the Big features a bit disconnected as its posthumous, every other track is amazing and ghost in his element (chamber)
I always put Fishscale and IM neck and neck as his second best album, people do sleep on it fr…
eustice at it again!!
“Since then, he’s evolved into one of Hip Hop’s most celebrated MCs and has plans to unleash his highly anticipated follow-up to Muddy Waters, the aptly titled Muddy Waters 2.”
Hahaha what up M-80!
Thank you for this article.
You are welcome!
His verse on Buck 50 was and still is off the charts.
Last year of high school
Krazy shit…swear b4 I even knew this article was out that Red verse popped in my head …”the words u talk/better be the words u walk” his whole delivery was on some D0pE MC shit…”pull of the mask so u know it’s me and yo weed got mo seeds than ODB cant smoke witcha”…classic fuckin album start to finish
Personally, a top-10 album. True classic even though I still don’t know wtf Ghost was talking about…
It’s God body shit…if you don’t know what that is….then you won’t understand a lot of Wu Tang bars… especially Ghost and Rae
“Scooby snack Jurassic plastic gas booby trap” means what lol? Ghost has never rapped like that before or again, which is why the rumors of Superb writing started in the first place. Got nothing to do with godbody shit at all
Perb said he wrote Supreme Clientele for Ghost lol And we’re supposed to believe an alleged pedophile, for what reason again? Who cares that Ghost never rapped like that before or after, NEITHER did Superb. Why would write all these crazy seemly nonsensical and cryptic bars for Ghost, but write some mediocre shit for himself? Superb was average at best, and I’m being generous. So how did he write a classic album for Ghostface again?
ghost around 2000 had a different style…you look at SC, also the pete rock album and tony touch (?)album, all around that time…ghost style was different…when he did nutmeg (i think he even did that on radio as a ‘freestyle’ prior to the song being release) that was some diff shit…ghost himeself even said it numerous times he was “..just thinking up some fly shit” to rhyme, some non-sequitur shit if you would call it…he even told big tigga similar things years ago in the basement when asked about what some of his rhymes meant
Naw buddy…even Ghost said Nutmeg was jus a bunch of shit he made up…wasnt meant to make sense
Smoke a spliff, fuse with the couch and let the album take you to place
Appreciate the truth and not REDMAN NEVER WROTE NUFFIN DOWN HE JUST SHOWED UP IN THE STUDIO AND STARTED BABBLING AND 2 HOURS LATER THE WHOLE ALBUM DONE like we been hearing the last 20 years
I prefer Ironman, but Supreme is good too!
Official article. The only thing that was “questionable” (if that even is the word to use) was that he “evolved” to be one of hip hop’s most celebrated…
Knowing Red was ironically involved with some of the foundational “Golden Era” artistry: Keith Murray, K-Solo, Das EFX, EPMD, & The LOTU (HIT SQUAD!!!)…I think that he, prior to Clientele, was already lamented as a founding father of this rap shit we love…
No slight to the piece though… shit is ?
✌?
Hard to read an article where the first sentence is bullshit. Clientle was his third solo album. Yall hiring??
Actually it is, iron Man is his first album and supreme clientele was his second. Do the knowledge to the math, wu forever, Peace.
Of all the things they get wrong in these articles, that wasn’t one of them, fam.
redman did not go on to “evolve” into one of the most celebrated mcs in the game after SC…he was already an mcs’ mc before 2000…
Ya better put more respect on RedMan’s name… He was most rappers favorite rapper before Supreme Clientele. Must be a young white person that wrote this… Smfh! DO BETTER! And Supreme Clientele is top 5 albums of ALL TIME!
Masta Killa is not on Buck 50.
Correct, he appears on Wu Banga 101
Reading this as I sit here taking in the Wu Saga on Hulu. Remembering this is the greatest hip-hop group to ever exist.
IMO Red didn’t evolve as an MC coz dude was always a beast on the mic