The year 2025 has been the year of a Wu-Tang Clan reunion of sorts. First, Raekwon dropped an album in July called The Emperor’s New Clothes; next, it was Ghostface Killah’s turn with Supreme Clientele 2. Arriving digitally August 22, 2025, through Mass Appeal Records, but on physical formats such as CD and vinyl on October 21, 2025, Ghostface Killah’s Supreme Clientele 2 is his thirteenth studio album, joining a long list of classics like 1996’s Ironman and 2001’s Bulletproof Wallets. Considered a sequel to the chart-topping 2000 album Supreme Clientele, Supreme Clientele 2 is a relatively quick follow-up to 2024’s Set the Tone (Guns & Roses), plus it is a part of Mass Appeal’s fantastic 2025 “Legend Has It… list of releases.
At this point, a very seasoned veteran, Ghostface Killah, gets the album started by remembering 21 years’ worth, and persona reclamation in the opening track, “Intro by Redman,” gets us started old-school style. From here, “Iron Man” gives love to Ghostface’s 1996 debut persona with a hard-ass beat while “Sample 420” featuring M.O.P. carries Wu-Tang-era grit. Sounding great, you can almost envision the group jamming on the corner. Then there is “Curtis May” (featuring Styles P and Conway the Machine), which blends Wu-Tang’s mafioso swagger with the voices of the 21st century. Of course, these tracks risk walking that line between PSA and lifestyle glorification, but they are still a fantastic listen.
Being from Wu-Tang, Ghostface speaks mafioso; he speaks the language of the streets like he is doing a voice-over in a movie. Take “Georgy Porgy” for instance—the track talks about a drug spot heist told in Disco-Funk surrealism. Following the storyline, “4th Disciple” seems to pick up after the heist, on a hospital floor where he is holding vigil, echoing vibes from 1995’s Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…. Then you have “Sweet Thang” talking about hookers and drug-entrepreneur life. Meanwhile, “Break Beats & Beat Box” takes us back to the old school with raw energy.
Like Raekwon, Ghostface has conceptual skits peppered throughout the album, starting with “Pause.” This track is a commentary on Hip Hop culture’s reflexive policing. “Sale of the Century,” featuring Dave Chappelle’s satirical interlude, is the 10th of the 22 tracks. Next, “The Trial,” featuring Raekwon, GZA, Method Man, and others, is a courtroom drama in Mafioso Rap style.
Also similar to Raekwon, Ghostface reflected emotionally on legacy with “Love Me Anymore,” featuring Nas, in an elegiac verse about decades of Rap legacy in tracks like “Windows”. “On the other hand, Soul Thang” (featuring Driz, Nems, Sun God) hands the reins to the next generation, which includes Ghostface’s son. After this, “Metaphysics” carries the thread with old Ghostface philosophically reflecting, and “Candyland” seems to meld the legacy by passing the torch in a playful Funk piece while talking about dubious goings-on, as “The Zoom” is straight up nostalgia, throwing in Lionel Richie samples like he is a background singer with Ghostface’s reflections and hopes for the future.
Altogether, it’s good to hear these legendary Hip Hop artists such as Ghostface Killah reminiscing on their careers and what they have seen, and hopefully learned, to steer the next generation in the right direction. Rap has morphed a lot over the years since DJ Cool Herc and MC Coke La Rock in the ’70s Bronx, and the brand Ghostface Killah has put together is top-notch. That is why Cryptic Rock salutes Ghostface Killah for keeping the legacy going, giving Supreme Clientele 2 4.5 out of 5 stars.
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