Ageism, which was once a hot button topic in hip-hop, has slowly become an afterthought as rappers, with lengthy tenures in the game continue to service their fans with quality music. One MC in particular who has quieted any talk of forced retirements and stands toe-to-toe with father time is Raekwon, who has spent the past decade introducing himself to a new generation of listeners, along with staying true to the formula that served him well during his debut nearly 25 years ago.

The Chef's latest effort, The Wild, arrives more than two decades after his landmark 1995 album, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx, first made rap fans' ears go numb. His newest work is of an MC who may be long in the tooth, but spry enough to still hang with the young guns. His first release since unleashing Fly International Luxurious Art in 2015, The Wild is as gritty an album from The Chef as anything he's recorded since his Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... Pt. 2, and filled with soulful soundscapes, over which he kicks his thug lingo.

With guest appearances from Lil Wayne, CeeLo Green, Andra Day, G-Eazy and P.U.R.E., and production from elite boardsmen like J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League and Dame Grease, as well as an array of untapped talent, The Wild is one of the more riveting albums to hit the pavement in 2017.

Following a few focused spins and listening for what jewels would be dropped, we've compiled what we feel are 20 of best lyrics from The Wild that fans should take note of. Get your pause and rewind buttons ready.

  • "This Is What It Comes Too"

    Raekwon

    "I done blacked out, no man is safe, your crew is cornered/Why did you think you could step over me? I'm too enormous/Plus I heard you was an informant, cold brew sell 'em/Roll out the plastic, I'm about to catch a body on this"

  • "Nothing"

    Raekwon

    Yeah, we hillbillies, all of the real willies/Smoke grass, pop mollies, call him a pill-billy/Catch him in the field, do him real silly/Puddle of blood in the mud, that’s for frontin’, lookin’ real leery/Grab the flex-and-relax niggas/Automatic tax, not askin’, get your jawbone fractured"

  • "Marvin"

    Raekwon

    "Destined for greatness, counting his blessings/Young'uns struggling with pressures that the fact that his pops was a cross dresser/But he still loved him, you know the bond between his son and father/That only pushed him and forced him to sing harder"

  • "Marvin"

    Raekwon Featuring CeeLo Green

    "That night life had him speeding through hell/Scarred by the death of Tammy Terell, couldn't believe it, he spiraled downhill/Secluding himself from the music and the press/He was sick and really getting depressed/Time passed so he bounced back on track, new and improved/Even got himself a new wife too" - Raekwon

  • "Can't You See"

    Raekwon

    "I'm living proof that it's possible/Any obstacle you're facing can be erased son, don't let it conquer you/Throughout my journey, had some snakes in my past/But I couldn't let them strike me and catch the devilish germ from them/But the lesson was valuable, yeah, I learned from 'em/If they ain't godly, they wicked, ain't no concern for them"

  • "My Corner"

    Raekwon Featuring Lil Wayne

    "Porsche racin' with Scottish pitts/Best fly rum in the world, I got your girl eatin' exotic dick/Anthrax pussy, the minks, whiskey king/Wrote my name on her face, yeah, yeah, kush me" - Raekwon

  • "My Corner"

    Raekwon Featuring Lil Wayne

    "One for the money, nothin' after that shit/I'm gettin' foreign money, money talks with an accent/Life is a maze, I done ran out of Pac Men/Really need a crown on my head like a catholic/Never been a bitch and I don't plan on startin'/Blood gang, beat a beat like Pam on Martin" - Lil Wayne

  • "My Corner"

    Raekwon Featuring Lil Wayne

    "Flip train, lay it down flat, call it a G language/Keep flamin', sophisticated killers that's rich and famous/For actin' like your bakery bakes stacks/Get your cake snatched, and your pride too, money can't replace that" - Raekwon

  • "M & N"

    Raekwon Featuring P.U.R.E.

    "Majestic, marvelous, mind over matter more/My murderous militant mutilate millions/Monsters with the most masculine muscle/Maxing in a major way, munchin', making more moves maintainin’" - P.U.R.E.

  • "M & N"

    Raekwon Featuring P.U.R.E.

    "Nah, level nostalgic/We notable, notice the nozzles/These nuclear nose brothers are nonsensical/Nuisance is not a necessity, we necessary/We the new nickel mans, so just ask Nancy" - Raekwon and P.U.R.E.

  • "Visiting Hour"

    Raekwon Featuring Andra Day

    "See I describe great, and you despise that/Putting pressure back in this game, word from this live cat/Niggas besides that/I'm from a place where most don't make it out alive, and homicide can't even buy that" - Raekwon

  • "Visiting Hour"

    Raekwon Featuring Andra Day

    "Some of my niggas is still taking penitentiary charges/Life lessons, they never learned whether they lived or died, they not concerned/Caught in the system, clips, they got mouths to feed/By any means, they got to earn" - Raekwon

  • "The Reign"

    Raekwon

    "Glorious, wine deliverer, giving y'all something so fruitful/Truthful, heartfelt, celebrating his legacy/Longevity, I define it/Garments, they all designer/Jewels that be the brightest, my women, they be the finest" - Raekwon

  • "The Reign"

    Raekwon

    "Artillery for drama, bookoo armor/Let the pirahnnas eat up a haters chest, sleep in wooden pajamas/From a sauna, I pull steams out on you peons/No. 1 Don Lex, so sophisticated, educated, word complex/Throughout ya projects" - Raekwon

  • "Crown of Thorns"

    "Getting money easy, keeping it, that's the hard part/Creeps is scattered, just roam the land, call 'em ardvarks/Go ahead and try me now, filthy rich Africans/From the slums, glorious days, I bring the action in/Long-haired Brazilians love swallowing my children/Self-made poet, poetry constantly bringing millions" - Raekwon

  • "Crown of Thorns"

    Raekwon

    Money spill, heads tumble/Thugs rumble, drugs crumble/But still I'm all up in Banker's Trust thanking us/Preparing my speech, pulled up in a peach kamish/Seats is burgundy, soccer gear and Louis cleats/Hand me my medals, pussies, he was laughing at 'em/I know you wanted my bitch, but money won't attract her" - Raekwon

  • "Purple Brick Road"

    Raekwon Featuring G-Eazy

    "Clarity stones in my bracelets, watches and rings/From a rich nigga's perspective you know what that brings/Hatred, what do I do when I'm so used to shittin' on 'em/Do I stop because a jealous ass coward wants me to/Or do I go harder and buy more diamonds and blind his crew/Fuck it, I guess I do that 'cause I love to make 'em blue" - Raekwon

  • "Purple Brick Road"

    Raekwon Featuring G-Eazy

    "Forever may not exist but who else is as hot as this?/I played the beat then I tried at this/Cuban links on my neck and I just put a presidential on my wrist/This year you haters gonna acknowledge this" - G-Eazy

  • "You Hear Me"

    Raekwon

    "Catch me in the Chi, buying a bitch out/Flying in a Leer, I'm right in the bitch mouth/Heard I'm in the chair, Louie the bitch out/Its all real yeah/You heard it from his mouth"

  • "You Hear Me"

    Raekwon

    "Everyday motto, sleep for pay day/All in the lotto, shoes get suede grey/Out in the Cabos eating steak plates/Whatever it do, keep the same traits/G'z for name plates, sweep the main gates/Tried the blunt, yo, they me fixed green flakes"

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