Method Man talks about beef with Wu Tang...
The M-E-T-H-O-D Man is back on the scene and gearing up to release his third solo LP, entitled Tical 0: The Prequel, due out in the fall. But rumors have begun to circulate that the most popular member of the Wu will no longer claim his spot among the nine members of arguably one of the most influential hip-hop acts in history. Now, Method Man speaks to SOHH.com to settle the score about beef within Wu-Tang and his issues with ODB, aka Dirt McGirt.
The rumors of a Wu break up started in mid-July when talk spread that Method Man went off on a rant, dissing his Wu brethrens on radio. Allegedly, RZA called a meeting to discuss the group's future and to work out the differences, especially minor riffs between Ghostface Killa & Inspectah Deck, and ODB & Raekwon. The meeting led to a heated argument with a burnt Method Man vowing to never work with the group again. The rumor continues stating that Meth then released a diss-record to his Wu brethren called titled "Verbal Darts." But Meth is quick to clear up any and all false reports involving the group's differences, and sheds a different light on the situation between he and the Wu family.
"I'm having [my own] discrepancies with Wu Tang Productions," says Meth, who's been in Cali filming his new movie "Soul Plane" with Snoop Dogg. "Not Wu-Tang Clan, but Wu-Tang Productions. It's like I did what, two years, and I come home to nothing! You f#@$ing kidding me? That means they ain't handling their business."
Method Man, born Clifford Smith, seized the rap world in 1993 when New York got a taste of the Wu-Tang on their first single, "Protect Ya Neck" of their classic debut LP, Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). But their latter two albums - 1997's Wu-Tang Forever and 2001's Iron Flag failed to duplicate the success of the first. He reminisces on the glory days when everything was all so simple in the Wu camp.
"We had a unique deal G. Our sh!t was the first of its kind," he says, reminiscing back on 1994 when the Wu-Tang members all signed distinctive independent deals with different labels. "We had the option to sign solo deals with other labels. It was like 'look, if it's this man's time to shine, who am I to say it's my time to come with this album?' Being greedy and cut his throat? It ain't ever been like that with us. I was patient enough to wait. I'll come in three years down the line. As long as everybody eatin', that's good talk."
Meth's first solo album, 1994's Tical, was one of the most anticipated LPs in hip-hop history. It produced 1995's classic anthem-duet, "All I Need," with Mary J. Blige that reached No. 3 on the Billboard Charts and won Meth a Grammy in '96. In 2000, Method Man released his follow-up -- the aptly titled Tical 2000: Judgement Day -- released nearly four years after his debut. The record debuted to much fanfare in November of 98, selling over 400,000 records in its first week of release.
But Meth is quick to address the issue of jealousy surrounding the other members of the Wu, including estranged member ODB now known as Dirt McGirt. Method Man claims there's no love lost between he and ODB (now signed to Roc-A-Fella), responding to Dirty's claim on VH1 that no one from the Wu came to visit him in jail.
"I went to see Dirty's funky ass. He's a f#@$ing idiot," says Meth. "Dirty never f#@$ing liked me that's why. He never liked me. I mean he liked me but it was a f#@$ing weak emotion. It was jealousy. I wasn't taking sh!t off that ni99a plate. He's one of my favorite emcees [from] back in the day. He fell way the f#@$ off. He was one of the best ni99as."
Method Man is focusing on the future, and hoping that Tical 0: The Prequel will take him back to the glory days when heads were dusted off "Johnny Blaze." He can be currently seen in episodes of the HBO series The Wire, and he's also set to appear in the upcoming season of Boston Public. The future will see Meth team up again with budding-star Redman in two feature films, a remake of the Japanese comedy Jailbreakers, and DEA.
Later, QD.
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Originally Posted by Julio
