June 3 In Hip-Hop History: Wu-Tang Clan Drops 'Wu-Tang Forever'
By Tony M. Centeno
June 3, 2022
Wu-Tang Clan has delivered plenty of unforgettable records over the course of the group's career, but their second LP continues to stand-out among Hip-Hop's elite MC's and fans around the world.
June 3rd marks the 25th anniversary of the prolific rap group's sophomore album Wu-Tang Forever. The double-album, which dropped on this day in 1997, contains 25 tracks produced by The RZA with assistance from 4th Disciple, Inspectah Deck, and True Master. It was the first time RZA trusted other Wu members to handle some of the album's production. It was also the first time U-God's mentor Cappadonna appeared on a Wu album following his debut on Raekwon's debut LP Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
The album has a few stand-out records like "Triumph," which had no chorus and was the lead single for the album. It's also one of the only Wu records to feature all 10 members of the group. Other classics include "A Better Tomorrow" and "Impossible."
It didn't long for the album to become one of the best projects in the group's discography. Wu-Tang Forever debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and sold over 600,000 copies in its first week. A few months after it dropped, the album was 4x platinum according to the RIAA. It also earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album.
Wu-Tang Forever arrived four years after the Staten Island-based group dropped off their debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). In between those four years, several members of the group went on to drop their own debut solo albums like Method Man's Tical (1994), Raekwon's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... (1995) and Ghostface Killah's Ironman (1996), all of which were produced by RZA. Although they've gone on to drop other popular albums, Wu-Tang Forever is still considered the best selling album of Wu-Tang Clan's catalog.
In honor of its 25th anniversary, Wu-Tang clan dropped a special anniversary version of the album. It includes the album along with a lyric booklet, a silver colored 7-inch single of “Triumph” and “Heaterz” and a reissue of the double cassette in a slip case. You can cop it here.