They are the pioneers of a movement that will influence the entire earth for decades: hip-hop.
Formed in 1992 on Staten Island, they have eight albums to their credit.
The only copy of a mysterious album by New York rappers Wu-Tang Clan, "
Once upon a time in Shaolin
", was auctioned Tuesday to settle the conviction of Martin Shkreli, the provocative and hated pharmaceutical entrepreneur who had offered it before his fall, announced the American justice.
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Neither the price nor the identity of the buyer has been released, but with this sale, the settlement of the foreclosures "
relating to the conviction of Shkreli
" is now complete, one of the Brooklyn federal prosecutors said. Jacquelyn Kasulis.
The only copy of this 31-track double album would have been recorded between the late 2000s and early 2010s by the Wu-Tang Clan band, hip-hop legends, known for their lyrics on the harshness of poor neighborhoods and their samples inspired by martial arts films.
Sold as a unique work of art in 2015, the silver box set, containing the album and a handwritten booklet, was sold for $ 2 million.
The buyer turned out to be Martin Shkreli, then a young manager of an investment fund specializing in the pharmaceutical industry.
Arrested at the end of 2015 for stock market fraud, Martin Shkreli was mainly known for having multiplied by 55 the price of a drug intended for HIV-positive people, which had earned him the nickname of "
the most hated man in America
", embodying the supposed cynicism of the pharmaceutical industry.
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Shortly after being convicted in Brooklyn federal court in August 2017 of title fraud and stock manipulation, he sought to put the album up for sale on the internet, while threatening to destroy it.
The album was finally seized by American justice.
The court had imposed seven years in prison and the obligation to repay 7.36 million dollars, including seizures of his property, in March 2018. According to the terms of the initial sale, the album can not be marketed before 88 years old, i.e. the year 2103.
But his change of hands should rekindle the hope of Wu-Tang Clan fans that he will be able to enjoy it one day during a listening session.
A promise never kept by Martin Shkreli, who had just broadcast extracts to celebrate Donald Trump's victory in the 2016 US presidential election.
The Wu Tang Clan at the opening of the Fête de l'Humanité in 2015. Berzane Nasser / ABACA