Hip-hop fans, pour out a little liquor for the original baby's daddy.
Ol' Dirty Bastard, one of the most insane figures in hip-hop, collapsed inside a Manhattan recording studio on Saturday. He was pronounced dead shortly after at the age of 35.
A founding member of the rap group Wu-Tang Clan, O.D.B, or Russell Tyrone Jones, brought grit and humor to the hardcore group. His dirty lyrics and slang often confused listeners but nonetheless made them laugh. His nonconformist real-life personality and eccentric delivery made Jones respected, if not liked.
As far as talent, there is much to be said of Jones. Listeners first needed to decipher his often incoherent lyrics before his talent could be considered. Much like other members of Wu-Tang, Jones chanted more than rapped and often broke into song during the middle of his verse.
But the Brooklyn-born rapper wasn't notorious for his talent. His silly persona made him a likeable sideshow during the otherwise serious reign of Wu-Tang in the early '90s. He had several aliases - Dirt McGirt, Dirt Dog and most recently, Big Baby Jesus. No one, including him, took this very seriously.
He was in and out of jail throughout his lifetime. His smile flashed gold-capped front teeth. He consistently spoke with what could be considered raw street slang or a lisp and usually appeared to be mentally ill or high.
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Yet the ladies loved the Ol' Bastard. He fathered 13 children in his life with numerous women.
During the prime of R&B singer Mariah Carey's career, she did the unthinkable. She paired up with Jones in her 1995 single "Fantasy." In the video she donned a pair of roller skates and sang in her high-pitched angelic voice - all the while Dirt McGirt is wearing an oversized hoodie, stumbling around talking about he and Mariah going back like babies and pacifiers. It was ridiculous, really.
Yet it worked. It gave Carey street credibility and made Jones seem more human. If butterfly lovin' Carey could be paired with him, then clearly he wasn't that scary, right?
Several years later, Jones did a collaboration with Pras from the Fugees and R&B singer Mya. The hit "Ghetto Superstar" was born. Jones proved he wasn't only a dynamic element of the Wu-Tang but also a successful solo artist.
In the late '90s, Jones spiraled downward and was regularly in trouble with the law for drug and criminal charges. Yet in the middle of all the turmoil, he managed to release Nigga Please in 1999, which was produced in part by hitmakers the Neptunes. The song "Got Your Money" is still a club hit.
While his bizarre behavior was accepted onstage, in real life he was simply seen as a man with a severe drug problem. Some of his arrests included threatening to kill an ex-girlfriend, stealing a pair of $50 sneakers and possession of crack cocaine. At one particularly bizarre January 2000 hearing, Jones reportedly insulted the female district attorney by calling her a "sperm donor" and then took a nap in the courtroom.
The kung-fu loving rapper was a true warrior. The man was shot twice in his lifetime and managed to rebound each time. He was said to be completely drug free at the time of his death.
Jones made a mark on the hip-hop world, and hopefully his loveable, yet manic persona, will carry on. The man's got plenty of offspring.
