Ol' Dirty Bastard

Fort Greene and the Wu-Tang Clan

Russell Tyrone Jones was born on November 15, 1968, in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn. With his cousins RZA and GZA he formed a group first called Force of the Imperial Master, later renamed All in Together Now after an underground single of the same name. In 1992 the three became founding members of the Wu-Tang Clan, which released its debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers), in 1993. His stage name came from a 1980 martial arts film; Method Man has said it also reflected that "there ain't no father to his style."

Return to the 36 Chambers

His solo debut, Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version (1995), was released on Elektra. The singles "Brooklyn Zoo," named for his home borough, and "Shimmy Shimmy Ya" helped carry the album to platinum status. His loose, unpredictable delivery, mixing singing, shouting and rapping, made him one of the most recognizable voices of 1990s New York rap. Both singles were supported by music videos that received wide airplay, and "Brooklyn Zoo" in particular tied his persona directly to the borough where he was born and raised. He remained a member of the Wu-Tang Clan throughout his solo career and appeared on the group's second album, Wu-Tang Forever.

Collaborations and Nigga Please

Outside the Wu-Tang Clan, he appeared on the remix of Mariah Carey's "Fantasy" and on "Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)" with Pras and Mýa. His second album, Nigga Please (1999), included "Got Your Money," produced by The Neptunes and featuring Kelis. He received three Grammy nominations: Best Rap Album for his solo debut and for Wu-Tang Forever, and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Ghetto Supastar."

Death and Legacy

Jones had signed with Roc-A-Fella Records in his final years and was working on an album titled A Son Unique, which was not released. He died on November 13, 2004, in New York City, two days before his 36th birthday; the cause was an accidental drug overdose. He is remembered as one of the Wu-Tang Clan's founding voices and as one of Brooklyn's most distinctive performers.