In a world with finite resources, scarcity is often synonymous with value. With the laws of economics firmly in place, an item both scarce and desirable can therefore fetch a high price.
Legendary NYC rap collective Wu-Tang Clan understands this basic law of supply and demand, which is why it created only a single copy of its new album Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. Wu-Tang producer RZA dreamed up the concept of a single-sale album and set out to make it a thing of not just lyrical and rhythmic beauty, but a multi-faceted work of art.
"We’re making a single-sale collector’s item. This is like someone having the scepter of an Egyptian king," RZA told Forbes in 2014. The 31-track record comes in a hand-carved box, accompanied by a 174-page parchment-paper book bound in leather. All surviving members of Wu-Tang contributed to the record, and so far only RZA and his co-producer Cilvaringz have heard the album in its entirety. All other copies, including the album's master, have been destroyed.
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Legendary NYC rap collective Wu-Tang Clan understands this basic law of supply and demand, which is why it created only a single copy of its new album Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. Wu-Tang producer RZA dreamed up the concept of a single-sale album and set out to make it a thing of not just lyrical and rhythmic beauty, but a multi-faceted work of art.
"We’re making a single-sale collector’s item. This is like someone having the scepter of an Egyptian king," RZA told Forbes in 2014. The 31-track record comes in a hand-carved box, accompanied by a 174-page parchment-paper book bound in leather. All surviving members of Wu-Tang contributed to the record, and so far only RZA and his co-producer Cilvaringz have heard the album in its entirety. All other copies, including the album's master, have been destroyed.
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