Lite nytt om Ghosface nya album
Who's gonna take the weight? In these days and times--the last days--for a multitude of reasons, this is the question at hand. And, if ever there was any doubt, the answer is, of course, none other than Ghostface (the artist formerly known as Ghostface Killah, or GFK, to friends). Armed with his latest heat rock of an album, Fish Scale, which boasts production from MF DOOM, Pete Rock, J.Dilla, MadLib, and many others, the broad shouldered Ghost stands ready and willing to carry the Wu Tang's burden and return rap to it's proper course. "You know, niggas try to come on that other shit," he says of hip hop's growing ranks of imposters, "So I just had come back to raw drugs, sex, money, and murder shit real quick to show these young niggas how it's s'possed to be done."
And who better to kick the truth to the young black youth, than Ghost, an artist more universally accepted than American Express. "I know that niggas got love for me," he says. "Where ever I go, up north, down south, out west, niggas show me love, because they respect me as a true artist." In an industry of swagger jackers and copy cats Ghost has always stood for integrity and innovation and his unique wordplay and unparalleled taste in beats has been demonstrated on each of his four solo albums (Ironman, Supreme Clientele, Bulletproof Wallets, The Pretty Toney LP), as well as his contributions to the four Wu Tang Clan albums, and perhaps most notably Raekwon's lauded classic, Only Built For Cuban Linx. "It used to be all about originality and flipping new words," he says. "Now you got niggas all using the same words, but I come from that Slick Rick era, that Biz Markie era when everybody had to sound different, so my sound ain't like anybody else."
Indeed, born and raised in Staten Island's infamous Stapleton project, Ghost, born Dennis Coles 34 years ago, has always been a pioneer, even within his own crew. Though it's said that when Wu Tang Clan formed like Voltron in 1992 that RZA was the head, undoubtedly Ghostface was the body. "When RZA decided to form the Wu Tang I was the one that knew everyone," he says, "So I was the link that brought everyone together and that's why I was an executive producer on 36 Chambers." That album would go on to go 3 times platinum and change the face of rap music.
Though most rappers would be content with one earth-shattering release, Ghost followed-up 36 Chambers with Cuban Linx a short two years later and introduced the rap game to crack game. "With the purple tape me and Rae brought all that silk shirt, Cristal, wallabee shit to the game," he says. "We showed everyone how to do that drug dealer, live nigga rap, you know what I mean." Hailed an unquestionable classic Cuban Linx set the tone of rap for nearly a decade, and established the duo of Rae and Ghost as hip hop's most vivid, most visceral storytellers. The next year GFK made his solo debut with Ironman, and proved that, though he and Rae were an excellent team, he could excel alone as well.