Wu-Tang Clan is hip hop group based in NYC. They formed in 1992 in Staten Island, and they are still active with most of their original founding members. They have released five full-length albums, and after a 7-year pause, they will release their sixth album, “A Better Tomorrow,” in 2014.
There are 9 regular members of Wu-Tang Clan. RZA served as the producer and leader, with other members including GZA, Inspectah Deck, Method Man, Ghostface Killah, Masta Killa, U-God, Raekwon, and the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Their first album, “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” was released in late 1993 on Loud Records and was highly regarded in the rap and hip hop community. After a four-year hiatus, a second album called “Wu-Tang Forever” was released on Loud Records in 1997. So far, this “forever” claim has remained undisputed; despite that there have been few album releases over the past 20 years, they are still active to this day.
Because Wu-Tang Clan functioned as more of a compilation project than a full-time band, record releases were sparse and allowed each member to pursue a solo career with an increased presence and reputation. This helped increase Wu-Tang Clan’s popularity even more when they finally reconvened and released a new album. Their second album was released to the top of the Billboard charts and went multiplatinum.
We-Tang Clan went on to release three more albums on Columbia and Universal Motown record labels: “The W,” “Iron Flag,” and “8 Diagrams.” Each has been well received, though their popularity began to fade in the 2000s. Ol’ Dirty Bastard, one of the essential members of the group, passed in 2004 due to a drug overdose. “8 Diagrams” was the first album to be released since his death in addition to the one planned for release in 2014.
Wu-Tang Clan Albums
1993 – Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
1997 – Wu-Tang Forever
2000 – The W
2001 – Iron Flag
2007 – 8 Diagrams
via billboard.com