End of Discussion: Sean Price Says Ghostface Killah’s "Supreme Clientele" Is Better Than "Ironman"
By Insanul Ahmed | Feb 1, 2012 | 12:53 pm | Permalink
In the past seven days, hip-hop fans celebrated two classic rap albums. The first was Ghostface Killah's Supreme Clientele, which celebrated its 11-year anniversary last week on January 25th. The other anniversary is for a lesser-known album that still deserves mention, Sean Price's Jesus Price Supastar, which celebrated its five-year anniversary on January 30th.
The two artists share much in common. Both Sean Price and Tony Starks saw their careers take off during the '90s, both hail from large NY-based rap crews (Boot Camp Clik and Wu-Tang Clan, respectively), both are known for being in a duo (Ghost often teamed up with Raekwon and Price formed Heltah Skeltah with Rock), and both went on to thrive in their solo careers. "Wu-Tang Clan ain't nothing to fuck with/Boot Camp Clik ain't nothing to Wu-Tang," Price rhymed on "Like You," showing that he was keenly aware of the comparisons between the two groups.
And their two classic albums are more comparable than you might think. Although they aren't musically similar, P's Jesus Price Supastar helped resurrect the once failing Duck Down Records much like Ghost's Supreme Clientele restored faith in the Wu-Tang brand after it began floundering in the late '90s/early 2000s.
That's why we figured Sean Price—whose busy putting the finishing touches on his long-awaited Mic Tyson album—would be the perfect person to settle a long-running debate for us: Which album is Ghostface Killah's best album? Ironman or Supreme Clientele? So we got on the horn with the Brownsville representer to find out and he explained to us not only why Supreme Clientele is the superior record, but also how it was such a huge influence on his career.
By Sean Price (@SeanMandela)
As told to Insanul Ahmed (@Incilin)
beanoo617 February 1st, 2012 at 06:13 PM
yeah thats a hard one. thats like having to chose between sanaa or gabrielle. supreme clientele is a better and more cohesive album overall, but the top 5 joints on clientele cant fuck with "assassination day", "daytona", "wildflower", "fasta blade" and my personal fav "box in hand"
SETUP KCW February 1st, 2012 at 08:28 PM
Nutmeg,Wu Banga 101,One,Mighty Healthy+Buck 50 > Assassination Day,Daytona 500,Faster Blade +Box in Hand..
Sean February 2nd, 2012 at 02:28 PM
I agree, liked Ironman better personally.
Tie micson February 1st, 2012 at 08:19 PM
Ironman was good, but supreme clientele was pure art. My favourite record of all time.
dockevoc February 2nd, 2012 at 01:14 AM
Ironman is the greatest hip hop cd. Ever. The media has given Supreme Clientele a mythological aura that it is not deserving of because it was the only ill Wu album during a string of disappointing releases. "Next year 200 niggas coming with swords!"
P February 2nd, 2012 at 05:54 AM
Both albums are classics but I give the edge to Ironman. That shit was just so raw. Classic Wu shit. Sumpreme Clientele was more flashy.
Gabe February 2nd, 2012 at 08:33 AM
Yup Supreme Clientele>Ironman. But its closer than everyone thinks. BUT WILDFLOWER>>>>> not much ever came close in anyone's catalog. "Remember when i long-dicked you and broke ya ovary??!!!" WTF!? Dope drop, BigRuck/SeanMandela/MegaSean is one of the best and Ghost is simply undisputed...... would lve to see Price/Starks collabo... fuckit a HeltahSkeltah/Rae&Ghost joint would be amazing P!
Winston February 7th, 2012 at 07:03 PM
I agree. Supreme>Ironman only because in my personal experience I had to learn NOT to skip to my favs on Ironman whereas with Supreme I could let play all day upon hearing it the first few times. Supreme is flashy, yes, but I think done right with no apologies mixed with skill/dope beats and catering to a broader audience. The only disappointment from S.C. was the fact that "Cobra Clutch" wasn't on there(ended up on The Swarm LP) but promoted as if it was going to be on Supreme before Supreme hit. Cobra Clutch set the tone as to what was to be expected from S.C. when it finally hit. S.C. made up for it with a super solid album but that fact was a major disappointment. **And a H.S. Ghost/Rae collabo would be fantastic!! Hell, I'll even take a Fab5/Sunz of Man collabo!
Gabe February 2nd, 2012 at 08:36 AM
"A pair of Bright fat yellow AirMax/ Hit the racks, snatch em up son $20 off no tax"
Sirbiatch February 7th, 2012 at 01:52 PM
DEFINITELY Supreme Clientele. To me, it's not even a debate. and I LOVE how in-depth Sean P goes into this. His analysis is on point. Ironman feels like Cuban Linx 2. Clientele feels like.... no other Wu album. It's by far the most fun Wu album to listen to. It's happy, it's nostalgic, it's dark a little bit (Stay True), but ultimately a riot of a good time.