On Monday night (April 11), a classic hip-hop album showcased its connection to longevity. Wu-Tang Clan legends Raekwon and Ghostface Killah took to the stage at Sony Hall in New York and performed a series of hits from the leader’s classic solo debut album, Only built 4 Cuban Linxalso known as The purple bandwith a band in live form.
The ensemble included two electric guitarists, two keyboardists and a drummer. Besides the two iconic hosts, there was another vocalist who provided the album’s majestic harmonies, as heard on “Can’t Be All So Simple (Remix)” and “Rainy Dayz”, Bobbi Storm. Together, the troupe fervently played a symphonic expression of The purple banda spin in favor of the album’s reigning legacy that marked the era as a game-changer.
The purple bandor Only built 4 Cuban Linx, is among the pioneering works of narrative mafia rap and eventually catapulted the style into a subgenre of hip-hop. Nearly three decades later, the conductor remains in awe of the album’s well-known repertoire but, with solid humility, commemorates the gem, representing a defining period.
“When I made this album, I personally felt it was something great, but the commemoration it gave is undeniably embarrassing to me because I’m just a street kid who has tried to do something that I thought was real to me, and the world saw it as a blessing.
The performance is part of Ja Rule’s VIBES concert series, where performers adapt a routine after their travels in a way that tells stories. Raekwon and Ghostface Killah’s concert was the first to kick off the series as the experiment plans to take on a slate of class acts. The event was streamed exclusively on the ICONN LIVE app.
