Nas - It Was Written 25 Year Anniversary

Ghostface Killah released his debut solo album 25 years ago on October 29, 1996. Produced by fellow Wu-Tang Clan member RZA, Ironman found inspiration in sources ranging from blaxploitation films to classic soul and charted a whole new direction for hip-hop in the process. Ironman earned immediate mainstream success, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, and number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Though a solo album, Ironman is filled with Wu-Tang collabos, prominently featuring Raekwon and Cappadonna, with a handful of tracks featuring Ghost performing companionless. The album earned gold status in sales a year after its release and platinum by 2004, a true testament to its staying power. Ironman pieces together Al Green and Jackson 5 samples, gospel choruses, kung fu soundbites and piano vamps into something unpredictable and vital-sounding. Arguably one of the best of the groups solo albums to date, the record is filled with inventive production and rhymes, and ranks as another solid entry in the Wu-Tang legacy.