''The Swarm'' is the first compilation album by American hip-hop collective
Wu-Tang Killa Bees. It was released on July 21, 1998 via
Wu-Tang/
Priority Records
Priority Records is an American distribution company and record label known for artists including N.W.A, Ice Cube, MC Ren, Eazy-E, Master P, Snoop Dogg, Mos Def, Silkk the Shocker, Jay-Z, Paris, Mack 10, 504 Boyz, Brotha Lynch Hung, ...
. Recording sessions took place at Alien Flyers Studios and Firehouse Studios in New York. Production was handled by
Wu-Tang Clan
Wu-Tang Clan is an American hip hop collective formed in Staten Island, New York City, in 1992. Its members include RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Masta Killa, and, until his death in 2004, O ...
member the
RZA, who also served as an executive producer and presenter. The album also featured additional production from The Wu-Elements, such as
Mathematics
Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...
,
Darkim Be Allah,
Bolo Gah, DJ Devastator,
Inspectah Deck,
Remedy and The Blaquesmiths.
It features contributions from Wu-Tang Clan members
Ghostface Killah
Dennis David Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang ...
,
Inspectah Deck,
Masta Killa,
Method Man
Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), known professionally as Method Man, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. He is a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan, and is half of the hip hop duo Method Man & R ...
,
Raekwon
Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon ( ), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream success following the release of the ...
and RZA, and
Wu-Tang affiliates A.I.G., Black Knights of the North Star,
Cappadonna,
Killarmy, Remedy,
Royal Fam, Ruthless Bastards,
Shyheim
Shyheim Dionel Franklin (born November 14, 1979) is an American rapper from New York better known simply as Shyheim. He initially gained fame as a teenager, releasing his debut album ''AKA the Rugged Child'' at the age of 14 in 1994. He has sp ...
,
Street Life,
Sunz of Man
Sunz of Man is a New York–based List of Wu-Tang Clan affiliates, Wu-Tang Clan-affiliated group that currently consists of Prodigal Sunn, Killah Priest, Hell Razah, and 60 Second Assassin (emcee), 60-Second Assassin. The group's first incarna ...
, Tha Beggas and
Wu-Syndicate among others.
In the United States, the album debuted at number 4 on the
''Billboard'' 200 and number 3 on the
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip-hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Luminate. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated January 30, ...
charts. It was certified gold by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
on February 10, 1999, for the sales of 500,000 units.
Track listing
;Notes
*The "Intro" mentioned on the back cover, booklet and disc is not featured on the record itself.
*Track "Legacy" incorrectly listed as performed by A.I.G. in the booklet.
Personnel
*Timothy "
Timbo King" Drayton – vocals
(track 2)
*Chron "
Hell Razah" Smith – vocals
(tracks: 3, 4)
*Frederick "60 Second Assassin" Cuffie – vocals
(track 3)
*Vergil "
Prodigal Sunn" Ruff – vocals
(track 3)
*
Shyheim
Shyheim Dionel Franklin (born November 14, 1979) is an American rapper from New York better known simply as Shyheim. He initially gained fame as a teenager, releasing his debut album ''AKA the Rugged Child'' at the age of 14 in 1994. He has sp ...
Franklin – vocals
(track 4)
*Jason "
Inspectah Deck" Hunter – vocals
(tracks: 5, 6), producer
(track 5)
*Patrick "
Streetlife" Charles – vocals
(tracks: 5, 6)
*Corey "
Raekwon
Corey Woods (born January 12, 1970), better known by his stage name Raekwon ( ), is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as a founding member of the hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, which achieved mainstream success following the release of the ...
" Woods – vocals
(track 6)
*Elgin "
Masta Killa" Turner – vocals
(track 6)
*A.I.G. – vocals
(track 7)
*Robert "
RZA" Diggs – vocals
(track 8), producer
(tracks: 2-4, 6, 8, 15), executive producer
*Rodney "Islord" Stevenson – vocals
(track 8)
*Samuel "Beretta 9" Murray – vocals
(track 8)
*Terrance "
9th Prince" Hamlin – vocals
(track 8)
*Clifford "
Method Man
Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), known professionally as Method Man, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. He is a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan, and is half of the hip hop duo Method Man & R ...
" Smith – vocals
(track 8)
*Quintarus "Crisis" Bennet – vocals
(tracks: 9, 16)
*Reginald "Meko the Pharaoh" Dimeko – vocals
(tracks: 9, 16)
*Deshawn Dante "Doc Doom!" Cunningham – vocals
(tracks: 9, 16)
*Dewayne "Rugged Monk" Rose – vocals
(tracks: 9, 16)
*Anthony "Holocaust" Brown – vocals
(tracks: 9, 16)
*Andre "Christ Bearer" Johnson – vocals
(tracks: 9, 16)
*Apocalipps – vocals
(track 10)
*Blizzard – vocals
(track 10)
*Iron Mic – vocals
(track 10)
*Sha Gotti – vocals
(track 10)
*Robert "Truck" Daniels – vocals
(track 10)
*Buda Love – vocals
(track 11)
*Dragonfly – vocals
(track 11)
*Long Axe – vocals
(track 11)
*Samo Heung – vocals
(track 11)
*Dennis "
Ghostface Killah
Dennis David Coles (born May 9, 1970), better known by his stage name Ghostface Killah, is an American rapper and a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. After the group achieved breakthrough success in the aftermath of ''Enter the Wu-Tang ...
" Coles – vocals
(tracks: 12, 15)
*Ross "
Remedy" Filler – vocals & producer
(track 13)
*Timothy "Myalansky" Turner – vocals
(track 14)
*Joseph "Joe Mafia" Outlaw – vocals
(track 14)
*Corey "Napoleon" Hart – vocals
(track 14)
*Darryl "
Cappadonna" Hill – vocals
(track 15)
*Donnie "Darkim Be Allah" Banks – producer
(track 7)
*Ronald "
Allah Mathematics" Bean – producer
(tracks: 9, 12, 16)
*Mike McDonald – producer
(track 10)
*Jorell Brand – producer
(track 10)
*R. "Bolo Gah" Brown – producer
(track 11)
*David "DJ Devastator" Walker – producer
(track 14)
*Nolan Moffitte – engineering
(tracks: 1-4, 6-12, 14-16)
*Steve Sola – engineering
(track 5)
*Charlie Marotta – engineering
(track 13)
*
James Cruz – mastering
*Mitchell "Divine" Diggs – executive producer
*Sherin Baday – art direction, project coordinator
*Arlene Godfrey – project coordinator
*Jeff Trotter – A&R coordinator
Charts
Certifications
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swarm, the
Albums produced by RZA
1998 compilation albums
Hip-hop compilation albums
Albums produced by Mathematics
Priority Records compilation albums