SHABAZZ THE DISCIPLE x HELL RAZAH - "R.I.P. T.H.U.G. Angelz"

Back in 2008 original Sunz Of Man members and Red Hook, BK residents Shabazz The Disciple and Heaven Razah formed The T.H.U.G. Angelz. An acronym for Those Humble Under God, the duo bonded over spiritual music that exposed the tough life in the ruff neighborhoods around them without gloryfing the horrors. The powerful chemistry of this duo had already been showcased on a handful early underground bangers as part of the Sunz (including "5 Arch Angels", "Deep in the Water" and "Writin' Rhymes With A Liquid Pen"), it was first during the late 2000s that fans would be able to experience just how incredible these two sounded together. Since hearing him on "Diary Of A Madman", I've personally held Shabazz The Disciple to be one of the illest and most underrated emcees of all time. Few, if any, other emcee can conjure up such deep spiritualism within his lyrics while also coming strapped with a real raw, hardcore street edge. Add to that the fact that Shabazz is an extremely strong storyteller, as he has proven time and time again and you pretty much got an artist with the whole package. Hell Razah is a perfect compliment to 'Bazz aggressive rawness as he's more soft spoken, with a lot of knowledge built into any which verse, often presented in a reflective, almost nostalgic pretext.

In 2008 they hooked up with BabyGrande and released "Welcome 2 Red Hook Houses", an overlooked thirteen track set featuring some absolutely outstanding records such as "The Orbituary", "Audiobiography Remix" and "Welcome to Red Hook". Prior to the release of that album word on the T.H.U.G. Angelz project was that they were working exclusively with super producer Ayatollah, who suprisingly didn't have a single credit on the aforementioned CD. The chances of getting to hear the mysterious Ayatollah collaboration that the duo obviously had worked hard on seemed to die when 'Bazz and Razah had a public falling out and vowed to never work with each other again. A true shame! Luckily the story doesn't end there as Hell Razah has decided to release the entire project as a free download for the fans. Featuring 13 songs plus some additional bonus tracks, this is some pretty damn dope shit right here. Ayatollah (who I think is responsible for the vast majority of production on tracks 1-13) does a good job with the soul samples, and like true street poets The T.H.U.G. Angelz builds true Soul music by injecting their lyrics with pure emotion and pain, sprinkled with wealth, health and knowledge of Self. WINGZ UP!!

“On behalf of Hell Razah Music, Inc. & GGO Chapters across the globe we invite you to enjoy the music and continue to support & pray for our founder and President Heaven Razah as he continues in his recovery  and music endeavors.” - Queen the Prophet (Ghetto Govt Officialz 1st Lady)



ALSO COP HELL RAZAH - "EL RAZIEL" LP @ iTUNES

PRODIGAL SUNN - "Summer '88"

Based on his many apperances and cameos on classic Wu records, Sunz of Man member Prodigal Sunn used to always be one of my favorite Killa Beez. Impeccable voice, rhymes filled with knowledge, and appearing on some of the best Sunz and even Wu solo album posse cuts. In 2005 he released his debut solo album "Return of the Prodigal Sunn" which wasn't all that, despite having some mindblowing RZA tracks (mainly "Brutality (The Grindz)" but also the reagge tinged "Lovely Ladies") and a few other gems. A couple of years ago he also released his sophomore album "Hood Chronicles", another LP that was good but hardly up to the lyrical standard he set for hismelf, save for the sole 4th Disciple / Hell Razah collaboration "Rising", mainly because the vast majority of the beats were handled by unknown Salvee One. Don't sleep on his 2012 mixtape "Prodgal Sunn Meets DJ Premier" featuring all new P. Sunn verses over classic Preemo beats.

If you follow the Sunz of Man member on Facebook you are well aware that the talented lyricist is prepping his third solo album to be released sometime this year - "Determination & Perserverance". Before that, if everything goes as planned, Sunn is about to release the free prequel tape "The Spark". That aforementioend mixtape will feature the new single "Summer '88", a nostalgic look back at the late '80s, what many consider the middle of the first great era of hip-hop, and so on. Both the beats and the lyrics/flow makes the concept justice. The song features singers Stevey Sounds and The MDC Dancers with a video directed by P.Sunn himself together with DOP Danny "Swess" Carrillo.

HELL RAZAH - "Gates Of Hell" / "Patriot Act: The Mixtape"

This was actually released a couple of weeks back but I haven't gotten around to listen to it until now and totally forgot to post about it. Strictly a digital release, Hell Razah's latest album is entitled "Gates of Hell" and packs a mean punch of fourteen tracks of straight, uncut dope. There's a lot of vintage soul samples, bumping rhythm tracks, high pitched vocal hooks, and a whole lot of knowledge delivered in Razah's usual clear cut vocab. With a guest apperance by Sadat X on "Contribution X" a long with strong cuts such as "Falling Down", "Dead Poets", "Godflesh" (the single streaming above) and "The Crucifixion" this is a suprisingly strong album that I strongly recommended. Clocking it at just over thirty minutes, it's a short but powerful listen filled with clever rhymes with an important message.  I wonder whether this is newly recorded music or if this was recorded before Razah's medical problems. Either way he sounds on fire all the way through - on first listen I'd say this is one of his strongest projects yet, most definitely. Unfortunately no stream is available, but it's definitely worth the purchase from iTunes.

01. "Spiritualized" [Intro]

02. "Ghost of Malcolm X"

03. "Dead Poets"

04. "Godflesh"

05. "Cold Wind" [Interlude]

06. "Section 8"

07. "Falling Down"

08. "Unconditional Love"

09. "Angel Of Death"

10. "Purple Haze"

11. "Lamb Of God"

12. "Halos [Remix]"

13. "The Crucifixion"

14. "Gates Of Hell" [Outro]

For those who might have missed it Heaven Razah also recently dropped a free mixtape in anticipation of "Gates Of Hell". Called "Patriot Act" the DJ Fiyaa hosted mix is made up of sixteen hard hitting tracks that are mostly either previously unreleased or brand new. Big up to Razah for keeping real music alive. Tune in, turn it on and TURN IT UP!!

Download Mixtape | Free Mixtapes Powered by DatPiff.com

CAPPADONNA - "Real Niggaz" / "Why It Gotta Be This?"

When Cappadonna first got out prison and made his first recorded apperances on Raekwon's "Ice Water" and "Ice Cream" in '95, followed by no less than five songs than Ghostface's "Ironman", he absolutely blew the collective mind of the hip-hop community - his 54 bars verse on ""Winter Warz" still stands as one of the greatest verses of all time. In short Cappadonna was one of the most promising new emcees in the industry around this time, and apparantly he is responsible for having learned the basics of rhyming and freestyling to a lot of the Wu generals back in the early days. But then something happened, on his five apperances on "Wu-Tang Forever" he sometime came off-beat, sometimes made little to no sense, and sometimes was as brilliant as ever. This continued on his '98 debut album "The Pillage". However, with enough incredible verses and his unique flows coupled with no less than seven outstanding RZA beats, five True Master bangers, and additional potent head knockers by 4th Disciple, Allah Mathematics, and Goldfinghaz, "The Pillage" was a remarkble debut album that today has gained a well deserved cult-following.

However, his 2001 follow-up "The Yin & The Yang" often considered as one of the absolute worst albums in the 60+ discography of the Wu-Tang Crew.. The production by the original Wu-Tang Elements producer was here replaced by Jermaine Dupri, 8-Off a.k.a. Agallah (who is a dope producer indeed), Neonek, and Inspectah Deck, The two producers who reprised their role from the predecessor is True Master and Goldfinghaz, on the single "Super Model" (above) and "Love is the Message" (Ft. Raekwon). Not suprisingly these are the albums only good songs, a long with 8-Off's lone contribution "The Grits". Not only are the vast majority of beats embarassingly wack, but the majority of Cappadonna's performance is equally bad. However, the project could have been a lot better and less embarassing if things had played out a bit differently. 

Although The RZA and Divine are still listed as executive producers of the project, Cappa had a huge falling out with The Abbot of The Wu-Tang Clan around this time - sometime he touches on on his following album "The Struggle". In fact, Cappa had already recorded verses for the Wu-Tang Clan's 2001 album (you can hear him in the chorus on the hidden track "The Glock"), but not only were all his verses cut from the final project, his picture was even airbrushed from the album artwork. In the same vein, RZA's two original production contributions to "The Yin & The Yang" was completely removed from the album, after appearing on two advance promo versions (one clean vinyl promo and the advance CD). Not suprisingly, these two tracks ("Why It Gotta B This?" and "Real Niggaz"), were by far the strongest songs on the LP and why they hardly would be able to save the project, it would've made it a lot stronger combined with the three good songs mentioned above. Both songs have a classic Wu-Tang sound, with menacing strings, agressive drums and powerful bass, which also makes Cappa come off as much more potent in his writing and lyrical delivery. "Real Niggaz" also features a guest apperance by Sunz Of Man's Prodigal Sunn who was one of the foremost Wu affiliates when it came to high profile cameos at the time. If you haven't heard these joints before, be sure to stream or download them below, and while not make a little EP of these two joints and "Supermodel", "The Grits" and "Love is the Message". Suuuu!

[Comp / Article] 4TH DISCIPLE - "Disciple Zone Vol. 1"

El-Divine Amir Bey, better known as 4th Disciple, is a true original in a hip-hop game where most producers is occupied by imitating each other. Though once an integral part of the Wu-Elementz, the exclusive production company lead by The RZA, 4th Disciple was undoubtedly the one who had a 100% unique style whereas Mathematics, True Master and later Bronze Nazareth sounded more like protoges of RZA. Born and bred in Steubenville, Ohio, Bey, then known as Sewlyn Bougard, grew up in a musical family and started soaking up the bulging hip-hop scene at a young age. "I was born into music. From my mother playing the classics around the house, to my father and uncles jamming in Grandma's basement, all of which influenced me heavily." After acquiring some equipment 4th soon started sharpening his skills as a deejay which eventuall would lead to production using both pause-tapes and a Casio keyboard. Steubenville also housed a gang of local emcees which  would become incredibly important to 4th's future career, including One Man and future Killarmy members Islord, Shogun Assasson and Beretta 9.

Around this time Robert Diggs, a.k.a. The RZA, occassionally visited Steubenville with his cousins ODB and GZA, selling drugs and hanging out in similiar circles as 4th. The future superstar and head of Wu-Tang Clan recognized a kindred spirit in the young 4th Disciple and invited him to work on the nine-man unit's now classic debut album "Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)". Though he didn't produce anything on the album per se, he handled the turntables on the few cuts that needed turntable work, and more importantly gave him his first taste of recording an album as well as soaking up production tips from Prince Rakeem "The RZA". Even then he realized that he was part of a beginning legacy that was gonna be huge, "I always believed in my heart and mind ["36 Chambers"] would be a success. I actually thought things would grow to be bigger than it did but it's still a legacy". It wouldn't take long before after this that 4th's name started appearing as a producer; in 1994 he laced the A-side of female emcees Wild Pitch single "Hush Hush Tip", a collaboration with Method Man and legendary composer and pianist Weldon Irvine, followed by "Sub Crazy" on Meth's debut album "Tical". The latter is an interesting case, not only because it's the first non-RZA production on a Wu-Tang clan related album, but because 4th was credited as a co-producer under RZA although he himself has statetd that he did indeed make the basic track. A long standing rumour is that Def Jam didn't want any unknown producers on Meth's debut album, and many has said that Y-Kim is the uncredited producer of "What The Blood Cloth". Proper credit on not, 4th would go on to work in various capacities on the debut albums by Ol' Dirty Bastard (co-producer) and Raekwon (co-mixer, technician and turntablist on several tracks), produced joints with 12 O'Clock, Raekwon, U-God and Cappadonna for various mid-'90s soundtracks. But most importantly he produced no less than five tracks of Wu-Tang Clan's multi-platinum selling world wide phenomenon "Wu-Tang Forever"; including stand out tracks such as "Impossible", "A Better Tomorrow" and "Older Gods".

4th's style became instantly recognizable; structuring hard hitting, but emotional and melodic samples from relatively obscure sources, often favorizing music in major key. As he started moving away from the inner circle of the Wu-Tang Clan his focus became producing music for Sunz Of Man, Gravediggaz, Killah Priest and especially his group Killarmy - a six man unit made up of members from both Steubenville and Staten Island, whose three albums 4th produced, mixed and oversaw, in fact working behind the scene as the "unofficial" seventh member. By this time The Disciple had definitely found a large fan base and a signature sound that still to this day makes Wu-Tang fans cry out for 4th beats on any and all Wu-Tang album that's being released, despite him not having worked with a Clan member since Cappadonna's "Blood Brothers" (2003) and U-God's "A Long Time Ago" (2005). Instead he has focused a lot of his time working with underground artists and putting out previously unreleased music from the heigh of his creaive bursts. He's also a well-experienced engineer and mixer for hire. But whether he's producing or mixing, you can always tell that he always puts his heart and soul into the music "I have been doing a lot of mixing and mastering these days but my creativity sometimes comes out quick and other times it's a long process depenedning on what I'm striving to do ... I'm a traditionalist so I still use a lot of old school methods with the new technology such as filtering bass-lines and break beat drum loops underneath or behind the kick & snare, etc."

As a long time Wu fanatic I can remember how enchanted beats like "Wu-Renegades", "Impossible", "A Better Tomorrow", "Atoms to Adams", "Nasty Immigrants", "The Night The Earth Cried", and so on made me feel at the time (and still does). In other words it's about damn time that I put together one of my compilations, Lost Tapes stylee. Since I'm sure a majority of my readers are well aware of his work on the songs already mentioned in these article, I have tried to make a compilation of equally banging material that you might not be as familiar with; a couple of them even being unreleased to this day. I usually try to keep my compilations at a reasonable length at around 60 minutes and 14-16 tracks, but listening through the possible tracks I decided that these joints are so dope I had absolutely no problem at all sitting through 20 joints and almost 75 minutes of 4th Disciple heat. I really hope you do the same, and truy enjoy this career overview of the talented musician that stretches from 1994 to 2012 and includes music by Killarmy (none of the album stuff though), One Man, Raw Intellect, Cilvaringz, Tragedy Khadafi, Prodigal Sunn, Rev. William Burks, Vinnie Paz, Sunz Of Man and more. I have a feeling that this will be the first out of two volumes, his catalouge aint huge but pretty much everything in it is extremely on point. The interview quotes spread out throughout the interview are borrowed from iStandardproducer's interview with 4th, which is a nice read while you sit back, press play and  TURN IT UP!!  Oh, one last thing - since I don't have PhotoShop on my new computer, I borrowed the cover of 4th's unreleased instrumental project "Frequence Enforcements Lessons One" for this. If anyone wish to help me out with future compilation artworks please drop me an e-mail.

01. 4th Disciple - "4Give Me: Intro"

02. One Man - "Black Sheep"

03. KGB - "Bless Ya Life: Grim Mix"

04. 9th Prince Ft. Killarmy, Ruthless Bastards & TMF - "Generation Next"

05. Killa Sin - "Feel It: Interlude"

06. Cilvaringz - "Deaf, Dumb & Blind"

07. Raw Intellect - "P4P (Poison 4 Profit)"
08. Bugsy Da God Ft. P.R. Terrorist - "Dogs in Heat"

09. Killarmy - "The Cookout"

10. Remedy Ft. Beretta 9, Solomon Childs, Shogun & Longe-Lo - "The Anthem"

11. Rev. William Burks Ft. Killa Sin, Beretta 9 & 4th Disciple - "Be A Man"
12. Wu-Tang Killa Beez Ft. Killarmy & Prodigal Sunn - "Dances With Volwes"

13. Vinnie Paz - "Washed in the Blood of the Lamb"

14. Sunz Of Man - "Bloody Choices"

15. Killarmy - "Interlude (Unreleased)"

16. Killarmy Ft. Solomon Childs" - "Which Way You Going

17. Atari Blietzkrig Ft. Hell Razah - "Cyclosarin" 

19. Prodigal Sunn Ft. Hell Razah & Tuac - "Rising"

20. Tragedy Khadafi Ft.  Killa Sha - "Mind State"

 4TH DISCIPLE - "DISCIPLE ZONE V.1"

PRODIGAL SUNN & CHI-KING - "Let Me Thru"

As I think I've written in the past on here, Prodigal Sunn has for the longest been one of my favorite emcees out of the extended Wu-Tang camp, and especially when it comes to loose singles and guest features. His latest single is a collaboration with Brooklyn Zu member Chi-King called "Let Me Thru" where the two emcees pay their respects to the late great Ol' Dirty Bastard. Dopeness!

[Video] P. SUNN x DJ PREMIER - "Remains Real"

I've always been a huge fan of offical Sunz of Man member Prodigal Sunn, always looking forward to his apperances and cameos; the cadence, the intendent lyriks, the immaculate breath control, unorthodox flow, and so on. His 2005 debut carried some real gems ("Brutality - The Gindz", Lovely Ladies",  "In My Life"), and his recent sophomore was a step in à good direction; it was dope, I still fel hes capable of morse.

I can't believe it's alertast been two years since The Good Sun went all in over vintage DJ Premier classics on the mixtape "Prodigal Sunn meets DJ Premier", à banker which seemed to fly righ over a lot of people's heads. Well, the mixtape still bangs and now P lets loose of a brand new set of visuals for the mixtape cut "Remains Real". Peace to Art Vanderlay for the hook-up and Enjoy!

Tha Beggaz Ft. P. Sunn - "God Talk"

The Beggaz was affiliated with Wu-Tang in the late '90s, contributing with a Classic track on "Killa Beez: The Swarm" and releasing a couple of brilliant underground 12":s. The guys recently uploaded a previously unreleased Prodigal Sunn assisted low-fi cut called "God Talk" which definitely were recorded sometime during the '90s; I would guess somewhere between '96 and '98. The sound quality isn't all that, but it's a bass heavy, Moody piece with terrific verses from everyone involved. Might very well be from that lost Tha Beggaz album that was supposed to drop on Wu-Tang Records sometime in the late '90s. Take a listen below and shouts to the homie Rusty Wu-Chain for putting me on to this!

[Upcoming] PRODIGAL SUNN - "Hood Chroniclez"

I always considered Prodgial Sunn to be one of the illest Killa Beez from all the amazing verses he spat on albums from Wu-Tang generals like RZA, GZA, ODB and Masta Killa, of course along with his work with Sunz of Man. His solo career never really took off though, in his entire career he only dropped one solo LP previously (2005's "Return of the Prodigal Sunn"), so this'll definitely be interesting; I'm not familiar with Salvee One who produces the majority of the record, but hopefully he brings out some serious heat for P. "Hood Chroniclez" should be out soon so be on the look out. Thanks to Jammin for all the info on the project.

01. "Kings Palace" [prod. by Marc Cary] (Ft. Tuac)
02. "Me" [prod. by Salvee One]
03. "Hood Sagas" [prod. by Salvee One]
04. "I Will" [prod. by Salvee One]
05. "Hustle Grind" [prod. by Salvee One]
06. "World Famous" [prod. by Salvee One]
07. "Summer 88" [prod. by Salvee One] [cuts by DJ Swift]
08. "Everywhere" [prod. by Salvee One]
09. "Huslem Anthem" [prod. by Marc Cary] (Ft. Tuac)
10. "Tell it Like it is" [prod. by Salvee One]
11. "Hey Love" [prod. by Salvee One]
12. "Livin' On Top of the World" [prod. by Jamez Jamez]
13. "Taxation" [prod. by Salvee One]
14. "Rising" (Ft. Hell Razah & Tuac) [prod. by 4th Disciple]
15. "Do" [prod. by DJ B. Original]

[Comp] SUNZ OF MAN - "NOTHING NEW UNDER SUN"

Even if you're only remotely into The Wu-Tang Clan and their many affilliates, the name Sunz Of Man should ring a bell. Not where they only one of the absolute first of the Killa Beez (not to mention best) to get the chance to release a few 12" singles of their own to test the waters. These proved Sunz was the breeding ground for some of the finest lyricists in rap's history, including Killah Priest, Hell Razah, Prodigal Sunn and the joker of the deck, 60 Second Assassin. They constantly made music that forced you to think and/or take a stance; each respective emcees style really clicked with the next and their ear for beats were always on point throughout the 1990s. The result was a four man crew (originally six, then five) that should have made a lot higher numbers than they did. 

With their singles run between 1995 and 1996 that featured dark classics like "Soldiers Of Darkness" / "5 Arch Angels", and "No Love Without Hate", they separated themeselves from their peers through mixing the dark, rugged beats that you'll expect from murder music, but instead injectimg vast amounts of knowledge. Despite the underground popularity of those singles (some which even garnered a very small amount of MTV play), it wouldn't be until 1998 that Sunz Of Man's official debut LP landed on store shelves; "The Last Shall Be First". Featuring production by The RZA, True Master, 4th Disciple and Supreme, and cameos from Raekwon, U-God, ODB, Method Man, Wyclef and even Earth, Wind & Fire, the album was a great lisen, though it could be argued that it lacked the agressiveness and punch of those early aforementioned singles.

But even before that, they easily had enough material to fill up several albums. There's been rumours for years about a debut album called "Nothing New Under the Sun", which I recently learned was never completed. But the music that they recorded in the mid-'90s around the same time they dropped those first timeless singles, and had hooked up with The RZA and 4th Disciple, easily surpass what actually became the official debut album. The four man group (Shabazz The Disciple lett the group when they signed to Wu-Tang Records) stayed busy in the studio, and the rumours for an album somehow formed; those who read The Source back in the mid-'90s might remember ads for a Sunz Of Man debut album called "Nothing New Under The Sun", featuring the previously released singles. This was at the very height of The Wu-Tang's success, during releases of such timeless classics like "Return of the 36 Chambers", "Cuban Linx" and "Liquid Swords", and the only Killa Beez to strike a deal beside Shyheim The Rugged Child (who was somewhere in between a Wu-Tang affiliate and dito GP Wu at the time). RZA had started his own Wu-Tang Records imprint at this point, and Sunz Of Man's  "Soldiers Of Darkness" was its first signee; meaning that "Nothign New..." or whatever they would've choosed to call it could've been the first release on the label had they decided to release it in 1996. I haven't heard much why the label didn't push more for a group album from this quartet, as they had much of the Wu-Tang sound they were known for at that time, and Priority Records wasn't exactly known to boycott hardcore hip-hop. Maybe it was the heavy knowledge that scared them off. After all, all major record labels strive to make sure that the population are kept dumb, deaf and blind, which is the exact reason that we see people like Cheef Keef and Lil' Boosie getting record deals and extreme promotion backings; but that's a whole other discussion for another day.

Wu-International's Reccolectah pointed me to their Prodigal Sunn interview where he said that it was really only loose joints that was recorded, and that "Nothing New Under the Sun" as an actual LP never existed or was planned. That however didn't stop me when I decided that we needed to hear at least some type of an album of this classic material that Sunz recorded around 1994 to 1996. Through extensive research, a lot of time and thought, and the use of my ears to determine production- and vocal styles found on the extensive gang of tracks pre-"The Last..." that I had collected throughout the years. I was determined to put together a full-length "album" that I believe come as close as possible represent what we would have heard in 1996, had Sunz Of Man debuted then instead. To my ears, these 18 tracks came out as an absolutely terrific set, resulting in that you might find the '98 retail album a little bleak in comparision the next time you give it a spin.

It should be noted that I've loved "The Last Shall..." since I first popped in the disc when it dropped, and still does. The earlier '95 sessions are many times a completely different animal altogether though; filled with moody and dark soundscapes, chaotic strings, haunting female vocals, off key piano lines all tied together by the rugged boom-bap drums. Together these elements create a fantastic canvas for the four emcees to paint vivid picture of ghetto struggles, 5% knowledge, righteous living, cinematic stories and so on. Something that will please Killah Priest fans is that he's heard on damn near every song here, as opposed to the official debut album where he only kicked five verses in total. I believe the majority of these 18 tracks were recorded between 1993 and 1996, and is mainly produced by Supreme (Kourt) and 4th Disciple; with some additional input by Y-Kim, RZA, Allah Mathematics and possibly True Master.
Speaking on RZA, you'll notice that both "Can I See You?" and "Inmates to the Fire" appears here again, despite them being tracks on "The Last...". The reason being that those songs were recorded way back in '95, and although they had to re-record the verses when they found the original reels during the making of the official Red Ant album, the sound fit perfectly with the other tracks in the set. Below you'll find Hell Razah's own words on these particular two songs, from this great interview on "Last Shall Be First" :

"Inmates to the Fire - This was done at RZAs house, where we also did "Soldiers of Darkness." We had done this around the same time they were doing Rae's album. We had done another song called "As It Was Written" that didn't make the album. Those two songs were on the same reel. We couldnt find the beat because of everything RZA lost in the flood in the studio. It was through the will of God that we found it. We had to redo the vocals over and all sorts of crazy shit. Killah Priest was on the original song. He was recording "Heavy Mental" when we were recording some of these songs, so we couldnt get a hold of him. 

"Can I See You - This is another vintage "Five Arch Angels" record from those days. RZA did this beat. It wasnt supposed to be on the album. 4th was in the studio and everyone thought he did that beat, but it was RZA actually. 4th came to the studio with Berretta 9 from Killarmy. He kicked his verse and Prodigal wanted him to get on the shit, so we threw Berretta 9 on there and did Sunz of Man/Killarmy collaboration. This song got such a response."

Just from this little excerpt, three songs are confirmed as having been recorded during those same sessions (including the RZA produced "As It Was Written"). "Soldiers Of Darkness", "Five Arch Angels", "Bloody Choices" and "No Love Without Hate" were all singles released on Wu-Tang Recors in the mid-'90s. "Mics Of Insanity" is the only Y-Kim/Sunz collabo ever released, and make claim for its name."Wicked Ways" could have been for the album; it was at least recorded during the same sessions, considering it's a 4th Dissciple production and later in the year used for the compilation "One Million Strong". In fact most of the tracks here, I have noticed through my research that almost every song here have, in some capacity, been said to be songs from the recording sessions post-Wu-Tang Records signing. And listening to it, there's really nothing that stick out in a bad way or sound out of place to me. Of course, the sequencing are all courtesy of me, to make it sound like an actual album rather than some thrown together songs, and from the eighteen songs included there are more than enough heat to carry you through the entire "album". With that being said, I think this is one of my best album-like compilations so far, and a must hear for any Sunz Of Man and mid-'90s Wu-Tang Clan fanatics. There's also a bootleg/mixtape that's been circulating for some time, bearing the same title, but bearing little to no resemblance to these early sessions heard on the download below.  Grab it, enjoy and TURN IT THE FUCK UP!!!

01."As It Was Written" [prod. by The RZA]

02. "No Love Without Hate" [prod. by Supreme Kourt]
03. "Soldiers Of Darkness" (w/ Killarmy) [prod. by 4th Disciple & RZA]
04. "Love Of Money" [unknown producer]
05. "Can I See You?" [prod. by The RZA]
06. "Life" [unknown producer]
07. "Wicked Ways" [prod. by 4th Disciple]
08. ""Let's All Agree"
09. "Wicked Wayz" [prod. by 4th Disciple]
10. "Black Sleeping Beauty" [prod. by 4th Disciple]
11. "The Law"  [prod. by Supreme Kourt]
12. "Embarassed" (Ft. Dreddy Kruger) [prod. by Allah Mathematics]
13. "Inmates to the Fire" [prod. by The RZA]
14. "Mics Of Insanity" [prod. by Y-Kim]
15. "Move Away"
16. "Signs Of The Times (Got Me Driiftin')" [prod. by  4th Disciple]
17. "Flame Throwerz (2 Be An Expert)" (Ft. Killa Sin & Timbo King)
18. "Five Arch Angels"

SUNZ OF MAN - "NOTHING NEW UNDER THE SUN"

Heaven Razah Interview + Mixtape

Last year Heaven Razah was in a medical condition that left all of his fans sending out our strongest prayers. Miraculously, not only did he survive and wake up from a coma but throughout the past year he has been making a relatively speedy recovery. Razah's even been getting back to the music, releasing the digital street album "Razah Reborn" and got several projects lined up for the future. Wu-International  recently connected with Heaven Razah for the first real interview since his recovery and it's great to hear the man speak again, filled with inspiration and in good spirits. Besides the very interesting interview, Wu-International has posted a brand new Heaven Razah mixtape called "The Family Guy" that features several Ghetto Government artists as well as Timbo King, Shabazz the Disciple and old Sunz of Man affiliate TrayBag. Check out the mixtape and READ THE INTERVIEW HERE.

01. "Razah Intro"

02. "The Invasion" (Starring Twin)

03. "Welcome to Red Hook Houses" (Starring Twin)

04. "Lock N Load" (Ft. Islord & Zu)

05. "BK to Moscow" (Ft. Mezza Morta)

06. "BK to Paris" (Ft. 7th Ambassador & ?)

07. "Angel Prayers" (Ft. Automatik)

08. "Millennium Child 2" (Ft. Ermaine)

09. "In Da Streets vs. Industry"

10. "Salute" (Ft. Kappo)

11. "Lost One Freestyle"

12. "718" (Ft. Cypha)

13. "Brooklyn Baby" (Ft. ?)

14. "Dead Presidents" (Ft. Kappo)

15. "B.I.G. Monster" (Ft. Timbo King)

16. "Angel Tearz"

17. "We From The Hook Son" (Ft. Shabazz the Disciple)

18. "Exclusive Ghetto Government" (Ft. Twin)

19. "Rocketer" (Ft. Kappo)

20. "Pass the Halo" (Ft. Traybag)

21. "Still in My Heart"

22. "Bomb Threats" (Ft. Natural)

23. "Monster" (Starring Kappo)

24. "Lights Out" (Ft. TrayBag & Kappo)

25. "Outta Space" (Starring Kappo & Young Vet)

26. "Yonkers" (Starring Kappo) 

27. "Stress" (Starring Kappo)

28. "Juice" (Starring Kappo)

29. "Brooklyn Swag" (Starring Kappo)

30. "Razah Outro"

HELL RAZAH - "THE FAMILY GUY" MIXTAPE @ WU-INTERNATIONAL

MIXTAPE: Prodigal Sunn / DJ Premier

Prodigal Sunn of Sunz Of Man was always one of my favorite Wu-Tang affilliates, and definitely one of the more underrated. Despite appearing on several huge projects including the Clan's "Iron Flag", "RZA as Bobby Digital in Digital Bullet" and DJ Muggs/GZA's "Grandmasters" and being the most heard voice on Sunz Of Man's two official albums, many people wouldn't know him by name. He only released one solo project in his entire career though, 2005's "Return Of The Prodigal Sunn" which failed to live up to its potential, much because of mediocre production, save for a few gems.

Average production is hardly a problem on this brand new mixtape which is based on the prodigal son ripping up classic DJ Premier instrumentals. Beats include masterpieces like Group Home's "Supa Star", Jeru's "Ain't The Devil Happy" and Royce's "Boom" and "Hip-Hop" to name a few. But there's also about two or three tracks I don't really recognize, but considering Preem's vast catalouge it's hard to say whether this tape has any exclusive instrumentals; one thing that's sure is how dope P.Sunn sounds over these joints though. I'm not sure how involved Preemo really is in the creation of this tape, but it does feature several interludes narrated by the great producer. The name of the mixtape is "The New Beginning" which hopefuly is an indication that this is the start of a P.Sunn renaissance. Check out the rapper @ MySpace where the mixtape link below was originally uploaded.

01. "How Many Real Hip-Hoppers..."
02. "Prodigal Sunn Meets DJ Premier Intro"
03. "Superstar Millenium"
04. "The Bar Was High"
05. "Guess Who"
06. "Remains Real"
07. "Make A Beat"
08. "Good Times"
09. "Forever Hip-Hop"
10. "Stop Biting"
11. "Better Than Better"
12. "Ain't The Devil Mad"
13. "Thank You"

PRODIGAL SUNN MEETS DJ PREMIER - "THE NEW BEGINNING"