Watch Wu-Tang Clan Crash ‘Letterman’ With ‘Ruckus in B Minor’
Two-thirds of the Wu-Tang Clan crashed The Late Show With David Letterman on Tuesday night, performing their emphatic new track, “Ruckus in B Minor.” RZA, Method Man, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck, U-God and Cappadonna represented the New York City crew, though GZA, Raekwon and Ghostface Killah were only onstage in spirit.
“Live on David Letterman,” says RZA to open the high-energy performance. “The Shoalin and the Wu-Tang is very dangerous.” The members take turns at center stage, with Method Man anchoring the track with his rough-as-sandpaper delivery (“I can see your drawers, pull your pants up/Can’t even call yourself a man until you man up”) and leading a chant of “Wu forever, and we’re still Number One!”
Inspectah Deck rattles off names of TV shows (Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, The Big Bang Theory) in his entertaining verse, while RZA surveys the crew’s collective mentality (“Rae, all those bad times is behind us/Ghost, put that mask on to remind us”).
RZA recently spoke to Rolling Stone about the painful genesis of the upcoming Wu LP, A Better Tomorrow (out December 2nd via Warner Bros.) and the group’s still-growing skills behind the mic. “With the Wu-Tang Clan, we’re at a mature age in hip-hop,” he said. “How do we move beyond that? By focusing energy onto one idea. It’s like you have to say, ‘I’m gonna stop fighting and I’m just gonna start riding.’ I have some of the greatest hip-hop talent on the planet. The talent has not decreased or evaporated.
“I hear Method Man and I’m like, ‘This fucker is writing like he’s fucking 16 years old,'” added the rapper-producer. “You hear Raekwon and his voice, his delivery. Ghost is still finding a way to take me back to the old neighborhood through his lyrics. Then you’re hearing someone like U-God sounding better – like, ‘Wow, he’s developing like a late bloomer.'”