Raekwon

At 54 years old, Raekwon has this physical status:

Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon (), is an American rapper and a member of Wu-Tang Clan.

He released his solo debut, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... in 1995 and has since recorded numerous solo albums, as well as continuing to work with Wu-Tang and providing an extensive number of guest contributions to other hip hop artists' works.

He is the founder of his own label ICEH20 Records. Raekwon has been cited as a pioneer of mafioso rap.

In 2007, the editors of About.com placed him on their list of the Top 50 MCs of Our Time (1987–2007).The Miami New Times described Raekwon's music as being "street epics" that are "straightforward yet linguistically rich universes like a gangsta Iliad."

Early life

Raekwon was born Corey Woods in Brownsville, Brooklyn, where he was raised by his mother during his early childhood. His father was an addict. Raekwon only met his father once when he was six years old. On that occasion, his father brought him to meet his paternal grandmother (also for the first time) and then snuck out of the apartment. Raekwon moved with his mother to Staten Island after his mother was robbed. They were living in Park Hill by the time Raekwon was adolescent.

Raekwon attributes the name Raekwon to the Five-Percent Nation, an offshoot of the Nation of Islam, when he was a "young kid." He converted to Islam in 2009.

Growing up, he witnessed his mother being hit and abused by different men, an experience which he said "affected [him] a lot." As a young man, his mother kicked him out of their Park Hill home when Raekwon got into an argument with her boyfriend and his mother sided with the boyfriend. During this time, he spiraled into a pattern of hopelessness and violent behavior. He became addicted to cocaine and crack cocaine until he became aware of how the crack epidemic was affecting those around him, at which point "it was an automatic stop."

Raekwon and rap partner Ghostface Killah attended junior high school together on Staten Island. Raekwon attended New Dorp High School, where he befriended rappers Remedy, Method Man and Inspectah Deck.

After being caught in a crossfire and accidentally shot four times, Raekwon began rapping in earnest. He later described being shot as an "important eye opener."

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Music career

As Sha Raider, Woods was the first rapped. He joined the Wu-Tang Clan, a nine-member rap group that mainly from the Staten Island but also from the New York boroughs. Raekwon The Chef was a character in the film The Chef rapped, and Louis Rich used the aliases Lex Diamonds, Shallah Raekwon, and Louis Rich.

The Wu-Tang Clan debuted on November 1993 as a recording artist, and later became a platinum winner on the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). It's just a single "C.R.E.M." The Billboard rap chart ranked #8 on the Billboard rap chart. Wu-Tang Forever, a double album that appeared in 1997, was named a 4-platinum by the end of 1997. The W, Iron Flag in 2001, and 8 Diagrams in 2007 were among the group's solo albums by its members.

Raekwon signed to Loud Records as a solo artist and released his debut solo single "Heaven & Hell" for the film Fresh's soundtrack. Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, his first solo album, was released on August 1, 1995. Method Man's Tical, a Wu-Tang salesman, was slagged. Raekwon's album received rave reviews, but it was soon recognized as a classic.

The album's narrative revolves around images of gang combat, mainly cocaine trafficking, and its transition from prison to the good life. RZA, a Wu-Tang member and house designer who made the whole album, described it as "moment mafia." Ghostface Killah, a Wu-Tang member, rapped in over half of the album's tracks, and the two created some songs in Barbados and Miami.

Raekwon described the lyrics as "trying to get out of the hood." We wanted to buy the most expensive cars and jewelry, as well as other items like that." The album, he said, was only made for a certain lifestyle or people who understood the word. However, it will eventually break off to people viewing it as a film and respecting it by saying, 'Yo, wow!' This is real. "This is something that has never been done before." "British Linx is the only one to have a dream" This is the first time anyone has done so well. The Billboard 200, the most popular albums chart, has four of the four four four people on the Billboard 200, and at No. 2. 2 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip Albums chart. In its first week, it produced around 130,000 copies and was designated gold, with at least 500,000 copies being delivered, two months later, October 1995.

Raekwon appeared on R&B's debut or 1997 album "Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... In rapper Fat Joe's album "John Blaze," he appeared alongside rappers Nas, Jadakiss, and Big Pun. Immobility, Raekwon's new album, was released in 1999 to mixed reviews. The Lex Diamond Story, which was published under the name Universal Records in 2003, received mixed reviews, with some readers dissatisfied, while customer comments varied. Raekwon cited a low marketing budget.

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx will be released, according to Raekwon. Pt. Aftermath Entertainment in 2007, Dr. Dre's label Aftermath Entertainment released II. Raekwon credited Busta Rhymes with regenerating his "Cuban Linx attitude," although most tracks were made by RZA, who preferred working with Dr. Dre to "yin and yang" styles.

The Only Built For Cuban Linx is Pt. Pt. Despite several delays as a result of sample clearance. Before the album was released by Raekwon's label, Ice H20, under major label EMI's distribution on September 8, 2009, the II track "Surgical Gloves" had been leaked. The album includes Wu-Tang members and associates, as well as Slick Rick, Jadakiss, Busta Rhymes, Beanie Sigel, and others.

Raekwon was ranked 10th among the "hottest" rappers in September 2009, according to MTV. Only Built For Cuban Linx Pt. Pt. is one of HipHopDx's 2009 awards. It's the year's second album of the year, with Rae becoming "the Hip Hop equivalent to The Godfather 2," according to Marlon. Raekwon was named Emcee of the Year in the previous year, much like Nas—although HipHopDX staff explained, he won't win, despite the fact that HipHopDX staff explained it.

Pt. After the success of Only Built 4 Cuban Linx in the crucial and largely commercial sense, P.P. explains. II. Raekwon collaborated with Method Man and Ghostface Killah for Wu-Massacre, a short trio album intended to showcase unity within the group. Raekwon revived chat of Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang, a project that was announced in 2007, but lacking RZA as a result of his reaction to the previous group album 8 Diagrams. Raekwon's projects were posted on a daily basis under his growing brand Icewater. While locating other underground artists, they both worked on his own project.

Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang was released in March 2011 in Beijing, China's fifth solo LP, but not a Wu-Tang Clan project. RZA did not participate in the initiative as originally intended, but as well as Black Thought, Nas, and Rick Ross, among others, appeared. Raekwon confirmed that he intends to unveil a third installment to the Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... albums.

Raekwon's own record company, Ice H20 Records, was launched in 2012. Raekwon revealed on November 30, 2012, that he would soon have an EP titled Lost Jewlry. He released "Never Can Say Goodbye" on December 20, which did not appear on the EP and did not land on the front page. Lost Jewlry was first announced on January 15, 2013. Among other things, it included guest appearances from Maino and Freddie Gibbs, as well as Scram Jones' production.

Raekwon revealed on January 1, 2013 that the name of his forthcoming album, F.I.L.A., an acronym for Fly International Luxurious Art, will be released in the second quarter of 2013. He would confirm a release month of September 2013. Raekwon teased that the album would be released in January 2014 but it was finally released on April 28, 2015. Raekwon announced that a new album was released in November 2016.

Raekwon's first studio album, The Wild, was released on March 24, 2017. He was the first to feature collaborations with fellow Wu-Tang Clan members. The critical reaction was encouraging, with Pitchfork claiming that the album was faster than Fly, which it suspected of having a "bloated roster." The Wild was generally seen as a revival of form by Raekwon, with less guest appearances by other artists than normal and greater emphasis on Raekwon's long-established style, despite the "maximalist modern production" he had used on Fly.

Raekwon's most recent appearance on Griselda's WWCD compilation as of 2020 was as a featured guest on the intro to the WWCD compilation. Elliot Wilson, of Tidal and Rap Radar, and Raekwon announced on August 1, 2020 that Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 3 will be released soon.

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