Wu-Tang Clan: ‘Legacy’ Coffee Table Tome Released

Well it appears the Wu-Tang Clan still “ain’t nuthin’ to f*#% wit.” In the year of our Lord 2022, the Wu-Tang Clan aims to make history again by releasing, Legacy, a coffee table tome in celebration of their 1993 Hip-Hop classic, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), the game-changing Hip-Hop album that altered and influenced Hip-Hop music and culture.

As the legendary group nears the 30th Anniversary of the release of the seminal Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), they are releasing Wu-Tang: Legacy. Only 36 copies of the LEGACY will be sold, with one of those copies being auctioned at Sotheby’s. The 300+ page coffee table tome is a rare relic encased in a chamber that will launch the group further into the future by chronicling its past. In tribute to and in celebration of “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)”, sculptor Gethin Jones (protégé of British sculptor Sir Antony Gormley, known for the Angel of the North) designed the chamber that encases each book. The actual chamber is being handmade by Warren Holzman, a noted blacksmith and visual artist at Holzman Iron Studio in Philadelphia, PA.

Wu-Tang legend RZA comments, “Items dating back hundreds, even thousands of years have graced the floors of Sotheby’s. It’s great that in our own lifetime, we were able to create something that will also grace these floors and be shared with the world.” 

The 36 bronze-encrusted, 400-pound black steel chambers along with the intricate details and personal touches of the Founder and CEO of Wu-Tang Management, John “Mook” Gibbons, are inspired by the ancient past and bronze ritual bowls of the Zhou Dynasty – whose first ruler was King Wu-Wang. The chambers consist of Spun Mild Steel bowls while the raised ridges, base and logo are finished in solid brushed brass. The art will be available for pre-order on Friday, December 16, 2022, at 3 pm ET. 

Housed within the chamber, featuring rare and never before seen images – documenting the journey of the legends of hip hop – THE WU-TANG CLAN: LEGACY delves into the origin of the group, their history and respective journeys. Thoroughly and meticulously, this quintessential publication honors the remarkable roster, and the executives, the affiliates, family and pivotable personnel that helped make the Wu-Tang Clan and Legacy book come to life, unpacking their rich history. The carefully curated images are from renowned photographers as well as family and friends of the Wu-Tang Clan.

Each book will be printed, bound and hand-stitched in Italy using the finest leather and materials. Each copy will be signed, numbered, and issued with a certificate of authenticity. Publisher Andy Cantillon, co-founder of Art of Publishing and Photographer, has worked extensively with Gibbons to create this tome.

Gibbons offers, “From the slums of Shaolin to the floors of Sotheby’s – Wu-Tang…Witty, Unpredictable, Talent and Natural Game. No other MCs can claim the same. WU-TANG Baby!” — 36 chambers. 36 books. 36 artifacts. 

The Wu-Tang clan is not new to creating rare and once-in-a-lifetime content for audiences. In 2015, Wu-Tang Clan sold only one copy of “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin,” their seventh studio album for $2 million. In 2021, the musical art re-sold for over $4 million. 

For purchasing information about Wu-Tang Clan: Legacy, visit www.WuTangLegacy.com.

To hear Inspectah Deck, Cappadonna, Masta Killa and John Mook Gibbons talk about the project, listen to Closer Look with Rose Scott on WABE Atlanta (90.1), who will be interviewing the hip-hop legends at 1:30 p.m. EST today (12/15/22).

This post was curated by Nsenga K. Burton, Ph.D., founder & editor of The Burton Wire. Follow Nsenga on Twitter @Ntellectual.

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