Wu-Tang Clan and Nas – October 2, 2023

WU-TANG CLAN & NAS
NY STATE OF MIND TOUR

Hip Hop icons Wu-Tang Clan and Nas are bringing their 2023 N.Y. State of Mind Tour to Place Bell in Laval. The 2023 tour comes on the heels of the sold out 2022 N.Y. State of Mind Tour run that hit 25+ cities last year, including an iconic show at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. The tour was also nominated for Pollstar’s 2022 Hip Hop Tour of The Year.

Wu-Tang Clan
Founded in New York City’s Staten Island in the early 1990s, the Wu-Tang Clan is comprised of members RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, U-God, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck, Cappadonna, and the deceased Ol’ Dirty Bastard (ODB). Their name is a reference to a 1983 martial arts film.

Led by the production of RZA, samples from martial arts films have thematically appeared throughout the group’s music, as have samples of classic funk and soul tracks from artists like Rick James, James Brown, and Syl Johnson. As a group, Wu-Tang Clan have three platinum albums among their eight LPs, and the group’s complete anthology (including solo albums) has more than 85 full-length releases. More than just rappers, Wu-Tang Clan are entrepreneurs and successful cultural influencers, with an empire that features everything from clothing lines and video games to books and acting credits.

Considered by many to be the greatest hip-hop group of all time, Wu-Tang Clan have been touring as a unit since their debut record — Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) — came out in 1993. The now triple-platinum release vaulted the New York City group with songs like “C.R.E.A.M.” (Cash Rules Everything Around Me) and “Protect Ya Neck” that are about as recognizable as anything in the rap canon.

Their live sets are a family affair, with every member of the crew representing their lyrical contributions to the Wu’s eight studio albums, as well as notable cuts from the Wu-Tang solo discography. With the omnipresent Wu-Tang “W” flanking all angles of the stage, there’s a familiarity to Wu-Tang Clan’s music that gives their shows unique mass appeal.

Nas
Nas (Nasir Jones) first reached an international audience when his track “Halftime” was tapped by producer MC Serch as the opening cut on 1992’s Zebrahead movie soundtrack.  Signed to Columbia Records, the first full-length album by poet and rhyme-master Nas arrived in 1994, Illmatic.  The RIAA platinum hip-hop landmark featured “It Ain’t Hard To Tell,” “The World Is Yours,” and “One.”  1996 brought the breakthrough double-platinum It Was Written (#1 R&B for 7 weeks, #1 pop for 4 weeks), with his first major crossover singles “Street Dreams” and “If I Ruled the World (Imagine That).” Success continued with the double-platinum I Am in 1999 (again #1 pop and #1 R&B), with the chart singles “Nas Is Like,” “Hate Me Now” (featuring Puff Daddy), and “You Won’t See Me Tonight” (featuring Aaliyah).

Subsequent albums by Nas included: the RIAA platinum Nastradamus (1999, #2 R&B, #7 pop, with “Nastradamus” and “You Owe Me,” featuring Ginuwine); the platinum Stillmatic (2001, #1 R&B, #5 pop, with “Got Ur Self A…,”  “One Mic,” and “Rule”); the platinum God’s Son (2002, #1 R&B, with huge R&B/pop crossover hits “Made You Look” and “I Can”); and the platinum double-CD Street’s Disciple (2004, #2 R&B, #5 pop, with “Bridging the Gap” and “Just a Moment”). And his 2012 album, Life Is Good earned him 4 Grammy nominations including Rap Album of the Year and is certified RIAA gold.

Over the years, Nas has also been the featured guest on a number of crossover hits by other artists, among them: Allure (“Head Over Heels,” 1997); Missy Elliott (the #1 “Hot Boyz,” 1999); fellow Queensbridge rapper Mobb Deep (“It’s Mine,” 1999); Jagged Edge (“I Got It 2,” 2002); J-Lo (“I’m Gonna Be Alright,” 2002); Kanye West (“Classic (Better Than I’ve Ever Been),” 2006); DJ Khaled (“Nas Album Done,” 2016); Swizz Beats (“Echo,” 2018); Jhene Aiko (“10K Hours,” 2020) and others.

In August 2020, Nas released King’s Disease. King’s Disease marked Nas’ first new album in 2 years. The album was entirely produced by Hit-Boy, and Gabriel “G Code” Zardes serves as the albums co-executive producer. The album won “Best Rap Album” at the 2021 GRAMMYs, marking Nas’ first ever GRAMMY win.

In August of 2021, Nas released King’s Disease II, a sequel to the GRAMMY Award winning album. King’s Disease II was executive produced by Nas and Hit-Boy and features collaborations with Eminem, EPMD, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, YG, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Hit-Boy & more. The album earned a nomination for “Best Rap Album” at the upcoming 64th GRAMMY Awards. Most recently, Nas released a surprise album titled Magic featuring A$AP Rocky and DJ Premier.

October 2, 2023 at 8 pm
Place Bell, Laval

To purchase your tickets visit: www.evenko.ca