You don’t want to slapboxx against The Man With The Iron Fists. That’s how jawbones get vaporized like Lebanese Blonde Hash. Really tho, check out the trailer and you’ll see the RZA knocking someone’s eye out the socket with a single punch. You probably want to catch this in theaters on November 2nd. Seriously, not since Kill Bill has Kung Fu been so F – U!
And if you know anything about the RZA’s body of work, then you will know exactly why he’s the perfect director for a martial arts film. His music is all chi-gong, and his swordplay with the written word, just as remarkable and unique in style as Chinese calligraphy. I would expect the god to be as meticulous with his cinematography as he is with his beats. This is the kinda flick that would make Run Run Shaw proud.
To help promote the movie, Bobby Digital himself is going across the country, bringing a sneak preview of The Man With The Iron Fists to audiences everywhere. Of course die hards want to hear the Ruler Zig Zag Zig Allah buss that witty unpredictable slang when he gets a mic in his hand, and if you ask you shall receive.
The Iron Fists Tour hit Atlanta on October 10th, and dropped mad knowledge in the cypher. DJ Absolut manned the decks and commanded a crowd presence with his effortless beat juggling and superb taste as a sound selectah. Then Kosha Dillz opened things up as the first emcee to check the mic. Representing from New Jerooze, Dillz dropped freestyles with finesse and then urged everyone to have a garage sale. I’m sure he could throw his yamaka like odd-job does his bowler, cuz the kid got some darts.
ATL representatives Clandestine stormed the stage next. With several members rocking the mic and representing different tribes like the Zulu Nation and the Temple of Hip Hop, these cats did their thing in true school fashion. They look like they’ve been through the fire earning their stripes, and their music was full of jewelz. Definitely check them out if you want some boom bap shit from out of the south. The rapid fire tommy gun spits of I-n-I came next. He claims his mind is unethical, but his music is full of honesty. Plus his hair game is wild.
Legendary freestyle MC Supernatural blessed the mic after I-n-I did his thing. If you know anything about Supernat’, know he got ill spits off the top, and when he rocks a show, that’s what you’re going to get. He had people shout him out words to use in his freestyles, and then had members of the audience hold objects into the air for him to use in his raps. Someone held up a Celtics hat, and Supernat’ quickly snuck that in his bars and said he was still a Knicks fan. He used everything from people’s cellies and business cards to one lady’s diamond rings. Someone even offered up their tallboy of PBR to ‘Nat who took the beer and proceeded to pour some out for the homes while he kept rapping and never skipped a beat.
J-Live was in the house maxxing out and enjoying the show. He’s hosting a monthly event called Hot vs. Dope you should check out if you are in the greater Atlanta area. It’s supposed to feature new hip hop you know… and don’t know, and classics that you hear and don’t hear. So word up, check that out at the Sound Table beginning on Oct. 20th
After Supernatural showed off his skills, Wu-Tang’s own U-God grabbed the mic and tossed some poisonous darts to warm the crowd up for the abbot. He rocked his verse from “Winter Wars” and sported a fitted Yankees cap. Golden Arms gave it up to ATL for being warm in October while NYC is cold, then Uey dropped heat kicking’ his verse from “Triumph.” The righteous wax chaperone rotating ring king followed that up with his bars from “Gravel Pit.” He likes his baby Glock 9 the size of a cellie and his martinis with a cherry. Check for U-Godzilla’s new album, entitled Keynote Speaker, coming out hopefully sometime in January or February of 2013.
The curtains dropped next and the audience was treated to the trailer for the RZA’s cinematic directorial debut, The Man With The Iron Fists.The projector screen was lifted from the stage and the RZA emerged with a bottle of champagne in hand, pouring glasses of the bubbly out to people in the crowd with their cups lifted high. Then the beat for “Brooklyn Babies” dropped and Bobby kicked his Shaolin styles. He brought it back on the Gravediggaz tip, bigging up Too Poetic and performing the cult classic “1-800-SUICIDE.”
RZA shook up what remained in his bottle of champagne and sprayed it out into the crowd as he reminded people that Wu-Tang Clan ain’t nothing to fuck with. He spit a tribute to ODB on the instrumental for “Reunited.” The abbot has produced some of the best beats in hip hop, and sometimes people forget the god got darts too. Bobby dropped an acapella with ill quotables like “I spit in a crocodile’s face, have a menage a trios with two apes” He also said he “date raped beauty right in front of the beast.” Pause. That Shaolin style is really unorthodox!
ODB’s son made a surprise guest appearance and came out singing “Oooh baby I like it raw.” He got his hair braided up just like his pops and carries himself just like Big Baby Jesus on stage. He’s almost the spitting image of his father and you just might mistake YDB for Osiris if you aren’t careful. Maybe what’s most remarkable is the fact that the young god was jumping around on top of security’s shoulders and kicking and screaming and wilding the fuck out and being extra buckwild, and did all that completely sober. RZA said he was born with that kind of energy, something must just run in the family. You know Wu gotta keep it all in together now.
Expect The Man With The Iron Fists to be just as epic as this show was. RZA told the crowd that Russell Crowe’s character study for his role as Jack Knife in The Man With The Iron Fists was based on Ol’ Dirty Bastard. That should be interesting. The RZA also said if you mix a hooker and a genius you’d get a fucking know it all. Yeah, you know what time it is. Wu-Tang forever. Make sure you catch The Man With The Iron Fists in theaters on November 2nd.
-you know ya man’s Drop Jewelz.
All photos by Cali Grindz