Can you believe it's been going on seven years since the last Wu-Tang Clan album was released? Supposedly, they're in the studio as we speak working on a new album called 8 Diagrams, to be released this summer, though - as is the case with Raekwon's Only Built for Cuban Linx II - I'll fucking believe that shit when I see it.

You have to assume that Raekwon has got more than enough songs recorded by now to put out an album. According to that list of this year's most anticipated albums in XXL, he's been working on it since 2005. In the interim, he's put out at least two mixtapes, and I've heard my share of songs that are supposedly from the album.

Only thing is, Raekwon is signed to Aftermath, so you know how that is. No matter how prolific an artist is, whether or not he actually releases an album is sort of at the whim of Dr. Dre. He doesn't like to put out a lot of bullshit. (Except, of course, his contributions to Kingdom Come.) So if Dre decides Cuban Linx II isn't ready to come, then it's just not coming out.

If both Cuban Linx II and 8 Diagrams do manage to be released this summer (and they won't), it could be a coup for the Clan commercially, with both albums being able to benefit from the joint publicity. Plus, '90s nostalgia is all set to become the new '80s nostalgia, as evidenced by the line-up of this year's Coachella, which is headlined by their old touring mates Rage Against the Machine.

(A young Bol had tickets to the fateful St. Louis date of that tour.)

My guess is that if the Wu actually manages to record a group album between now and the summer, it'd be a lot more likely to be released. You have to wonder though if they can pull it together in such a short period of time, especially since it's been such a long time since they've worked together as a group, let alone the fact that there's so many of them.

Obviously Ol' Dirty Bastard is gonna have a hard time making it, and word on the streets is that Ghostface might not be on the album at all. I'm not sure what the deal is between him and the rest of the Wu, but that's just what I heard. The fact that he didn't perform with them at that Hip-Hop Honors show would tend to lend credence to this rumor.

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