He said it was “very painful to watch” parts ODB in the Wu-Tang documentary.
In two days, Showtime is set to premiere the documentary Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics And Men, an in-depth look at one the greatest hip hop collectives all time. Viewers will be taken on a journey through the highs and lows the rap group’s career while director Sacha Jenkins also examines bits and pieces each member’s personal life. Inspectah Deck, U-God, GZA, RZA, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Masta Killa, and Method Man all act as co-producers the four-part docuseries, giving them the ability to tell their story with precision and truth.
One Wu-Tang Clan icon that’s missing from the bunch (yes, Cappadonna is featured in the film) is the late-great Ol’ Dirty Bastard who unexpectedly passed away from an accidental overdose back in 2004. In the documentary, filmmakers take a look at ODB’s relationship with Roc-A-Fella Records, the label he signed with as a solo artist in 2003 on the same day he was released from prison. RZA and Jenkins recently caught up for a Complex feature to discuss the Showtime series, and they admitted that they didn’t paint the Roc in a positive light.
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RZA revealed that when he viewed the documentary, it was “very sad and morbid” to see the memories ODB. “It was very painful to watch it. You have joy and pain that’s happening. You get the joy him and his energy. And then, the documentary goes and shows the fat Dirty, when Roc-A-Fella had him. I always felt like they never treated him] the way he was supposed to be treated.”
Jenkins admits that the film “not kind to Roc-A-Fella.” Rza agrees. “No. They never treated him the way he’s supposed to be treated. Even a diamond when it comes out the ground, it’s just a rock to be polished, and then cleaned and cut right. When he came out the system they were just like, ‘No, let’s just move him here.’ When you watch it, for me it was hard. It was a joy to see my brother. And they got stuff in there that none us had ever seen in the film, because they had a camera following him.”
“Dirty was being filmed at the time for a never-completed VH1 reality show, though some footage showed up in a documentary the channel aired]. They was doing something that he didn’t know they was doing. Reality shows wasn’t real yet like that. He became the first experiment a reality show, and he didn’t know that.”
Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men airs on Friday, May 10 on Showtime. Check out the trailer below.