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Ghostface Killah
Background information
Birth name	Dennis Coles
Origin	Staten Island, New York, U.S.
Genre(s)	Hip hop
Years active	1993 – present
Label(s)	Razor Sharp/Epic(1996-2003) Starks Enterprises/Def Jam(2004-Present)
Associated acts	Wu-Tang Clan Theodore Unit
Website	Ghostface's Official Site

Dennis Coles, better known by the stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and member of the Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the early- to mid-1990s, each member was free to pursue solo careers.

Ghostface Killah took his name from one of the characters in the 1979 kung fu film Mystery of Chessboxing.

Career

Ghostface Killah was born and raised in the Stapleton Housing Projects in Staten Island, New York. He debuted with the rest of the Wu-Tang Clan on their critically acclaimed debut, 1993's Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). A roommate of Wu-Tang founder The RZA, Ghostface helped bring together the other seven members, and would function as executive producer on all the Wu-Tang Clan releases.

In 1995, Ghostface would guest star extensively on fellow Clan member Raekwon's debut album, Only Built 4 Cuban Linx.... He also contributed songs to the Sunset Park and Don't Be A Menace To South Central While Drinking Your Juice In The Hood soundtracks, which would be included on his first solo LP, Ironman, in 1996. The album, which debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200, had a more pronounced soul influence (particularly 1970s soul) than previous Wu-Tang releases, and Ghostface's future albums would continue this stylistic trait.

Ghostface became well-known for both his up-tempo, seemingly indecipherable stream-of-consciousness rap and, later in his career, for his emotionally charged raps and his smooth constant flow. In 1996 he would discover that he was diabetic, a condition that would severely weaken his health. According to "Trials of Life", a 2007 song with fellow New York rapper Prodigy (himself a sickle-cell anemic), Ghostface assumed he had been stricken by a sexually transmitted disease until he received the diabetes diagnosis. This assumption was brought on by a rapid weightloss he experienced and that he had "went raw on plenty".^[1]

He would return in 2000 with his follow-up to Ironman, Supreme Clientele, which was critically acclaimed by both hip hop enthusiasts and mainstream critics^{citation needed}, and largely credited as reviving the waning Wu-Tang dynasty. "Cherchez LaGhost", a single off the album, became a minor club hit, and the sentimental "Child's Play" brought numerous comparisons with Slick Rick.

Ghostface wasted little time in recording his next album, the heavily R&B-influenced Bulletproof Wallets, released a year after Supreme Clientele. He had another minor club hit with "Flowers", which features guest vocals from fellow Wu-Tang members Method Man and Raekwon, although the album would be met with disappointing sales and reviews^{citation needed}.

Signing with Def Jam Records, Ghostface (officially but temporarily dropping the "Killah") released The Pretty Toney Album in April 2004. The album, while containing two RZA productions, featured none of the Clan; instead, it featured collaborations with Missy Elliott, D-Block and Jacki-O. The singles "Tush" and "Run", the collaborations with Missy and Jadakiss respectively, achieved moderate success in the clubs and charts, and the album was featured on numerous "best of the year" lists, including number nine on Pitchfork Media's.^[2] Ghostface also appeared on the track "On My Knees" by UK R&B group The 411, which became a hit in the UK and Australia, and released an album titled 718 (after the Staten Island area code) with a group of his Protégés, the Theodore Unit. In November 2005, Ghostface and Theodore Unit's breakout star Trife Da God released a joint project, Put It On The Line.

In 2006, Ghostface teamed up with underground favorite MF DOOM for a still unreleased album entitled Swift & Changeable. MF DOOM also produced several songs for Ghostface's 2006 album Fishscale, which was once again attributed to "Ghostface Killah". The album debuted strongly, in the #4 position on the US Billboard 200 and at #2 on the R&B charts,^[3] the rapper's most auspicious chart showing since the heyday of the Wu-Tang Clan and the release of his solo debut. The album also nearly unanimously received positive reviews. Ghostface embarked on a limited-date tour of US venues in support of the album, performing several of his concerts together with most members of the Wu-Tang Clan.

He has worked with 4Cast to produce his own action figure.^[4] In December 2007 Ghostface appeared on Spinner.com's comedy show The DL [1] to do a holiday commercial for his action figure.[2]

On December 4, 2007 Ghostface released his seventh solo studio album, The Big Doe Rehab.

Ghostface Killah, who is a fan of Iron Man, notably naming an album after the superhero and adopting his secret identity (Tony Stark) as a Gambino moniker, appeared in Iron Man (film) in a cameo as a Dubyan tycoon. His scene ended up being cut from the final film.

Technique

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During Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... he focused chiefly on imagery and the use of Wu-Tang's distinctive half-Five Percenter half-slang lyrics. Ghost often eschews the use of punchlines or similes for metaphors. He tells highly detailed stories on songs like "Run" and "Yolanda's House." Ghostface has often stated that his biggest influence as a young MC was Rakim, and his style does reflect this.

Jewelry and fashion

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Ghostface has an eccentric collection of unique jewelry that he mentions frequently in verse and interviews. Items heavily referenced are his "eagle bracelet", a golden eagle statuette worn on his forearm (which has since been retired), a statuette of Atlas ("Tone Atlas"), as well as the "Versace Plate" medallion.

Ghost also has an affinity for Clark's Wallabee shoes. On the cover of his debut album Ironman, he is pictured with Raekwon and Cappadonna holding several pairs of brightly colored Wallabees. Ghost can be heard discussing this technique on the Cuban Linx record, where he describes dying a pair blue and cream.

Rivalries

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The Notorious B.I.G.

Ghostface and Raekwon "subliminally" dissed The Notorious B.I.G. on 1995's Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... skit, "Shark Niggaz (Biters)", wherein the pair make angry references to Bad Boy Records' use of cover art motif from Nas' debut (a portrait of the artist as a child, although Big's cover is of his then-infant daughter) for B.I.G.'s Ready to Die album. Nas refers to this episode in his song "Last Real Nigga Alive" (from 2002's God's Son), where he confirms the tensions between Raekwon, Ghost and Biggie. Despite this conflict, Biggie was a fan of the Wu-Tang Clan, collaborating with Method Man and The RZA on his first and second albums respectively and performing live with Ol' Dirty Bastard on occasion. As Method Man would say in a 2004 XXL interview, Ghostface and Raekwon "don't like anybody". However, Ghost has gone on record praising Biggie in two later albums. On "Ghost Deini" from Supreme Clientele he croons "Tupac, Biggie / ohh how we miss you so / We want y'all both to know / We really love you so". Also, a bonus track featuring the late B.I.G. (as well as Raekwon) was included on Ghostface's 2006 album Fishscale.

50 Cent

Ghostface also had a feud with 50 Cent in the late 1990s and early 2000s, but unlike other beefs involving 50 which are typically played out in front of the media, this was not as highly-publicized. On 50 Cent's debut record How To Rob (An Industry Nigga), in which he aims insults at many high-profile rappers and R&B singers, he threatens to rob Ghostface, Raekwon and RZA of their pointed, "funny ass rings"; he would rob Ol Dirty Bastard, "but that'd be a waste of time". Shortly after the release, Ghostface, Superb, Gavin West, Killa Sin and others were accused of attacking 50 Cent at the Hot 97 radio station^{citation needed}; another of 50's posse was robbed by a member of Killarmy. The Wu-affiliated American Cream Team recorded a diss, a song that was widely distributed on the Internet credited to the Wu-Tang Clan. A skit on 2000's Supreme Clientele, "Clyde Smith", features a low-pitched recording (of Raekwon) naming 50 Cent and derisively making comments on his behavior and methods of attracting media attention through publicized "beef" with other rappers. Around this time, a 50 Cent freestyle dissing the Wu-Tang Clan began circulating; in his ad-libs at the end of the song, he derides them for their frequent use of the term "god". There have been various rumors of altercations between Ghostface and 50 Cent^{citation needed}, one of which describes 50 Cent being thrown down a flight of stairs by Ghostface. However, none have been verified. Since 50's rise to fame, both he and Ghostface have discussed the supposed beef in interviews, both saying that nothing serious had ever happened.

In July 2007, during a Spin magazine interview with 50 Cent, G-Unit rapper Tony Yayo alleged that Ghostface did not write his critically acclaimed album Supreme Clientele, but that it was written by Superb. Along with saying Ghostface had a ghostwriter, 50 Cent also made statements that Wu-Tang Clan's success is over, and that their creativity and lyrical skill doesn't matter anymore since it does not sell to the mainstream. 50 Cent however denied the stronger allegations: "I don't know nothing about any of that. He's the writer. I'm not gonna say he ain't write it."

In a November, 2007 interview with Rhapsody Music, Ghost responded with:

"^[5]

Discography

Main article: Ghostface Killah discography

Solo albums

• 1996: Ironman
• 2000: Supreme Clientele
• 2001: Bulletproof Wallets
• 2004: The Pretty Toney Album
• 2006: Fishscale
• 2006: More Fish
• 2007: The Big Doe Rehab

Filmography

Movie appearances

• Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996)
• Black and White (1999) as himself
• Hunter Dawson (2002) as himself
• Fade to Black (2004) as himself
• Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007) as himself
• Ironman (2008) as a Dubaian sheik; Cameo. (Cut in post production)

TV series appearances

• Made (2005) as himself (episode "Nile Is Made Into a Rapper")
• 30 Rock (2006) as himself (episodes "Jack-Tor" and "The Source Awards")
• Human Giant (2007) as himself (episodes "Mind Explosion" and "Mosh Pit!")
• The Boondocks (2007) as himself (episode "Stinkmeaner Strikes Back")

Video game appearances

• Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style (1999) as himself
• Def Jam Vendetta (2003) as himself
• Def Jam: Fight for NY (2004) as himself
• Def Jam: Icon (2007) as himself

References

External links

• Ghostface's Official Def Jam Site
• Video Interview with Ghostface on Scion Broadband
• Ghostface Doll
• Ghostface at MySpace
• [3] Ghostface at Stuff Magazine
• April 2006 Interview
• Ghostface Interview