Credit: Ghostface Killah

Wu-Tang Clan are one of the greatest hip-hop groups of all time. They’re responsible for classic albums such as Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) and Wu-Tang Forever, two of the best projects of the ’90s. However, not all of their albums have reached the same heights as their first two bodies of work, with Ghostface Killah quick to criticise their output in the 2000s.

In 2007, the group released their fourth studio album, 8 Diagrams. The project arrived three years after the death of Ol’ Dirty Bastard, although he didn’t appear on their previous album, Iron Flag. Wu-Tang were eager to return after six years without releasing a project, with RZA wanting to bring back lyrical rap at a time when hip-hop was going down a catchier route.

“This is the perfect time for us to come back; the stars are aligned,” he said. “It’s like when we first started with Steve [Rifkind]. We put out real hip-hop at a time when it was turning into pop or R&B. We brought the focus back to the music in its rawest form, without studio polish or radio hooks.

“People want something that gives them an adrenaline rush. We’re here to supply that fix. How could hip-hop be dead if Wu-Tang is forever? We’re here to revive the spirit and the economics and bring in a wave of energy that has lately dissipated.”

RZA mainly produced the project with additional work from Easy Mo Bee, George Drakoulias, and Mathematics, only reaching number 25 on the Billboard 200 chart with 68,000 copies sold in its first week. GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and Cappadonna all worked on the album, but it didn’t come without disagreements.

Ghostface and Raekwon were vocal about 8 Diagrams not having the trademark “Wu-Tang sound,” with RZA opting for something different. During an interview with XXL, Ghostface claimed Wu-Tang fans deserved a lot more than what they recorded. He felt the project didn’t have the narrative that they would typically bring to the table.

“8 Diagrams, I couldn’t stand it ‘cause I know us, and then I know my man [RZA] even more,” he said. “I’m like, ‘Yo, how could you give our fucking people that?’ Now you had people that said, ‘Oh no, I liked it.’ That might be the ‘yes men’ n*ggas. You know what I mean? Or it’s a miss or something ‘cause I know how we can be. “These motherfuckers wanted the skits. They wanted to feel like they at home with us. They wanna feel like, ‘Y’all didn’t hear this in a long time. What y’all got now?’”

RZA once revealed that 8 Diagrams was intended to be the group’s final album. However, they went on to release A Better Tomorrow in 2014. Their most recent album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, is still unreleased to the public after Martin Shkreli purchased the only copy for $2 million. After his arrest, the US Department of Justice sold it to a corporate entity.