The Dirty Version: On Stage, in the Studio, and in the Streets with Ol' Dirty Bastard

by Buddha Monk, Mickey Hess

Overview

On the tenth anniversary of his death, The Dirty Version is the first biography of hip hop superstar and founding member of the Wu-Tang Clan, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, to be written by someone from his inner circle: his right-hand man and best friend, Buddha Monk.

Ol’ Dirty Bastard rocketed to fame with the Wu-Tang Clan, the raucous and renegade group that altered the world of hip hop forever. ODB was one of the Clan’s wildest icons and most inventive performers, and when he died of an overdose in 2004 at the age of thirty-five, millions of fans mourned the loss. ODB lives on in epic proportions and his antics are legend: he once picked up his welfare check in a limousine; lifted a burning car off a four-year-old girl in Brooklyn; stole a fifty-dollar pair of sneakers on tour at the peak of his success. Many have questioned whether his stunts were carefully calculated or the result of paranoia and mental instability.

Now, Dirty’s friend since childhood, Buddha Monk, a Wu-Tang collaborator on stage and in the studio, reveals the truth about the complex and talented performer. From their days together on the streets of Brooklyn to the meteoric rise of Wu-Tang’s star, from bouts in prison to court-mandated rehab, from Dirty’s favorite kind of pizza to his struggles with fame and success, Buddha tells the real story—The Dirty Version—of the legendary rapper. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062231437
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	06/11/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	221
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Buddha Monk is an MC, producer, and singer who toured the world with Ol’ Dirty Bastard and the Wu-Tang Clan. He was Dirty’s onstage hype man and was instrumental in recording and producing his debut solo album, Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version. The saga continues: today Buddha tours and releases albums as a solo artist and produces and performs with acts such as the Committee, Heissman—Black Bush the Movement, Zu Bulliez, Brooklyn Zu, and many more.

Table of Contents

Introduction: No Father to His style Mickey Hess xi

1 Rusty 1

2 Enter the Wu-Tang 13

3 In the Lab 23

4 The Drunken Master 37

5 Ghetto Superstar 47

6 Pupperized 61

7 That Old Good Welfare Cheese 69

8 Gots Like Come on Thru 75

9 Escape to Willingboro 83

10 Restoration 91

11 The Man in the Red Suit 101

12 Better Start Wearing Bulletproof 109

13 Nigga Please 119

14 The Whole World is After Me 127

15 In A G Building, Takin' All Types Of Medicine 135

16 One More Chance 145

17 Free To Be Dirty 149

18 If You See Dirty, Tell Him We Love Him 155

19 Chamber Number 9, Verse 32 167

Final Thoughts 181

Acknowledgments 183

Notes 185

Bibliography 189

Editorial Reviews

09/08/2014
In this memoir, emcee and producer Buddha Monk (with English professor Mickey Hess) recounts his long friendship with hip-hop’s holy fool. Dubbed Ol’ Dirty Bastard, because, “there ain’t no father to his style,” Russell Tyrone Jones grew up in the rough Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant. Along with two cousins, RZA and GZA, ODB cofounded legendary hip-hop collective, the Wu-Tang Clan. The breakout success of Wu-Tang’s first album and ODB’s outrageous behavior (he once showed up to collect his welfare check in a limousine) brought the performer wealth and notoriety. ODB’s run-ins with both police and criminals, as well as massive cocaine use, stoked his paranoia. After a short stint in prison, ODB dropped dead of a heart attack in a recording studio two days short of his 36th birthday. Monk is a genial narrator and provides an authentic look at the N.Y.C. hip-hop scene. The narrative seems as if it were cobbled together from transcripts; still, for fans of ODB, aka Ason Unique, aka Big Baby Jesus, aka Osiris, this book provides a unique perspective on the troubled life of an intriguing artist. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

An unprecedented portrait of Jones’ inner life.” — Salon

“Monk captures [ODB’s] charisma and charm, but also the joy and pain that fame brought [him], as well as the drugs, the women and the demise. It’s a great work in honor of an individual who tried to walk the best line he could.” — Ebony

“Cuts through the urban legends to present more complex sides to the infamous icon.” — i.-D. Magazine

“An eye-witness account about the life and times of the larger-than-life character.” — Philadelphia City Paper

“Monk is a genial narrator and provides an authentic look at the N.Y.C. hip-hop scene [and] a unique perspective on the troubled life of an intriguing artist.” — Publishers Weekly

“Everywhere Ol’ Dirty Bastard went, Buddha Monk was there. Buddha was Dirty’s hype man on stage, and he helped protect him on tour when Dirty didn’t have any security. Buddha was everything to Dirty.” — Icelene Jones, Dirty's widow

“Dirty and Buddha were the twin towers. There ain’t no Brooklyn Zu without them. It was rare to see Dirty do a show without Buddha Monk.” — Hell Razah of Sunz of Man

“Provides a unique perspective [and an] entertaining, insightful portrait . . . For even a casual hip-hop fan, The Dirty Version is an easy and enlightening read. And for true hip-hop heads, this is some essential stuff. Word is bond.” — Winnipeg Free Press

Hlarious, profound, entertaining, and inspiring . . . One of the most interesting and unpredictable biographies I’ve ever read. The Dirty Version travels light-years beyond ODB’s shocking headlines to illustrate the relentless humanity of a free loving American icon. — MK Asante, author of BUCK: A MEMOIR

“Buddha Monk and Dirty were like Batman and Robin. Buddha wore many hats - he was an engineer, hype man, bouncer, and bodyguard. As long as I’ve been working with my cousins in Wu-Tang, Buddha Monk was there. I can’t remember a time when he wasn’t.” — John "Mook" Gibbons, founder and CEO of Wu-Tang Management and cousin to RZA, GZA, and Ol' Dirty Bastard

From the Publisher

Cuts through the urban legends to present more complex sides to the infamous icon.

i.-D. Magazine

An unprecedented portrait of Jones’ inner life.

Salon

Provides a unique perspective [and an] entertaining, insightful portrait . . . For even a casual hip-hop fan, The Dirty Version is an easy and enlightening read. And for true hip-hop heads, this is some essential stuff. Word is bond.

Winnipeg Free Press

Dirty and Buddha were the twin towers. There ain’t no Brooklyn Zu without them. It was rare to see Dirty do a show without Buddha Monk.

Hell Razah of Sunz of Man

Buddha Monk and Dirty were like Batman and Robin. Buddha wore many hats - he was an engineer, hype man, bouncer, and bodyguard. As long as I’ve been working with my cousins in Wu-Tang, Buddha Monk was there. I can’t remember a time when he wasn’t.

John "Mook" Gibbons

Monk captures [ODB’s] charisma and charm, but also the joy and pain that fame brought [him], as well as the drugs, the women and the demise. It’s a great work in honor of an individual who tried to walk the best line he could.

Ebony

Hlarious, profound, entertaining, and inspiring . . . One of the most interesting and unpredictable biographies I’ve ever read. The Dirty Version travels light-years beyond ODB’s shocking headlines to illustrate the relentless humanity of a free loving American icon.

MK Asante

Everywhere Ol’ Dirty Bastard went, Buddha Monk was there. Buddha was Dirty’s hype man on stage, and he helped protect him on tour when Dirty didn’t have any security. Buddha was everything to Dirty.

Icelene Jones

An eye-witness account about the life and times of the larger-than-life character.

Philadelphia City Paper