I know EVERYONE in the world, ever, seems to be a super duper Wu-Tang fan , but it'll take the MOST super-duperist fan of Wu-Tang to buy their new album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, because only one single physical copy was produced. Oh, and its copyrighted until 2103, so only the buyer will get to hear the music until then. It's set to be auctioned soon via Paddle8âyou must sign in to follow the saleâand bidding starts at five MILLION dollars.
Details of this album's story via Flavorwire:
The new and possibly final Wu-Tang album is more than two hours long. It features 31 tracks, all eight living MCs, most if not all Wu-Tang affiliates (Sunz of Man, Redman, Cher), sirens, bombs, samples from kung-fu cinema, and original skits. And it took more than two years to produce, mostly because 80-percent of its vocals were re-recorded to capture the intensity of early Wu-Tang records.
Sounds bitchin' right? But could this single album really be worth MILLIONS?
Sheesh, so what will five million, rather the highest bid, get the winner? The package is a double polycarb set, or a double "compact disc" set, and is sleeved in "two nickel-silver boxes that were hand-carved by a Moroccan artist and his team of ten workers." The albumâs music is based on Cilvaringz and RZA's visit to the Pyramids of Giza. As they ascended the Great Pyramid Cheops, while contemplating the Three Ages of Man, they conceived the concept for Once Upon a Time in Shaolin - the concept: âsonically travel back to the 36 chambers (presumably they mean WTC's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)." A return to WTC original genius sounds great, right? Most notably tho', as the music is under copyright until 2103, the buyer of this album will be the EXCLUSIVE listener of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin as "all digital versions have been destroyed." Wow.
As for the "only one copy exists" idea, RZA said this exceptionally-exclusive release is about âentitlementâ and suggested that "younger listeners feel entitled to music." He hoped the aura and rarity associated with a one-off, five-million dollar record would "change the perception of both art and music" and "provide a seal to [Wu-Tangâs] musical legacy." Okay, so this is a contemporary commentary on pop culture by making this THING exclusive. Fine. And as for the cost, he says, âThings have value when they are rare.â Alright, BUT if the point is to make the album into a fancy, single, museum-type pieceâso ONLY the buyer gets to hear the fucking thingâI really doubt THE KIDS WILL LEARN ANY KINDA LESSON! In fact, I can only imagine there will be resentment from the fans; not making this available is a bit insulting. Sadly, I reckon some ideas are sometimes best left on paper.