C.R.E.A.M. Protect Ya Neck Six Directions Of Boxing Wu-Tang Clan

C.R.E.A.M. Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)
Protect Ya Neck Album: Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)
Six Directions Of Boxing Album: The Man with the Iron Fists (2012)
by Wu-Tang Clan

"C.R.E.A.M.," an acronym for Cash Rules Everything Around Me, is the third single from the hip-hop group's debut album. Method Man, Raekwon, and Inspectah Deck share their stories of survival growing up in the slums and running drugs on the streets, "livin' in the world no different from a cell," in the hope to "kick the truth to the young black youth."

C.R.E.A.M. has had an enduring influence on rappers. Method Man's hook, "Cash rules everything around me, C.R.E.A.M., Get the money; dollar, dollar bill, y'all," and other references pop up in countless rap songs. Everyone from The Notorious B.I.G. and 2Pac to Kanye West, Nas, and Drake have incorporated send-ups to the song on their own tracks. Eminem also included it on the soundtrack to this 2002 film, 8 Mile.
This samples the Charmels' 1967 song "As Long As I've Got You."

Fifteen years after its release, C.R.E.A.M. was certified gold in 2009.

C.R.E.A.M. also landed at #32 on the R&B charts and #17 on the Hot Rap Singles chart.

C.R.E.A.M. is referenced in Wyclef Jean's "Sweetest Girl (Dollar Bill)," when guest Akon raps in the chorus: "I'mma tell you, like Wu told me, cash rules everything around me, singing dolla dolla bill y'all."

Protect Ya Neck was the first Wu-Tang Clan release. The Staten Island group financed the recording themselves and pressed a 12" single containing three versions of this song and a vocal and instrumental version of "After The Laughter Comes Tears" as the B-side. They also took care of distribution (bringing the single to local record shops and selling out of cars) and promotion (hitting up local clubs and radio stations) on their own. Their plan worked, and this DIY underground success gave the act instant credibility, as it was clear that these guys were real hustlers who lived their lyrics, and not a burnished record company creation. Major labels came calling, and the group signed with RCA subsidiary Loud Records in a deal that included an unusual clause: all members were free to pursue solo careers outside of the label.

Protect Ya Neck was a great introduction to the Wu-Tang Clan, since eight of their nine members feature on vocals (only Masta Killa doesn't get a lead). The Clan introduce themselves on the track, making it clear that they are not to be messed with.

GZA's verse at the end of Protect Ya Neck makes it clear how they feel about the music industry, as he raps: "The Wu is too slammin' for these Cold Killin' labels." Before Wu-Tang, GZA had a solo deal with Cold Chillin' Records, which soured him on the industry. RZA also had a pre-WU record deal, releasing a single (under the alias Prince Rakeem) called "Ooh, I Love You Rakeem" on Tommy Boy Records. That one also flopped.
A few musical references in the verses:

When Inspectah Deck raps, "You battle, you're sayin' goodbye like Tevin Campbell," he's referring to Campbell's 1991 song "Goodbye."

When Method Man raps, "Like fame, my style will live forever," he's harkening to the theme song for the TV show Fame, where Irene Cara sings, "Fame... I'm gonna live forever."

Joseph Kahn directed the mostly black-and-white music video for Protect Ya Neck. Kahn started his career at the helm of rap videos for acts like Snoop Dogg, Public Enemy, and Scarface. He would also famously direct clips like Janet Jackson's pricey "Doesn't Really Matter."

Protect Ya Neck plays in the 2017 "Don't Be Ridiculous" episode of the HBO series The Leftovers in a scene where the characters Nora (Carrie Coon) and Erika (Regina King) cathartically bounce on a trampoline. In the episode, Nora gets the Wu-Tang Clan logo tattooed on her arm to cover the names of her children. Wu-Tang songs are notoriously difficult to clear because they have so many samples and so many credited songwriters (every member who raps a verse gets a credit and must grant permission), but the show was able to secure "Protect Ya Neck" for $30,000, according to Business Insider.

Six Directions Of Boxing is from the RZA-directed martial arts film The Man with the Iron Fists. The Wu-Tang Clan leader also produced the entire movie soundtrack "That title is from one of my favorite Kung Fu movies," he told Billboard magazine.

Six Directions Of Boxing features all the original living members of the Wu-Tang Clan rhyming back-to-back. RZA told Billboard magazine, how he assembled his group for this track. "For me to have six Wu-Tang members going back to back, that's like another kind of boxing for me," he said. "GZA doesn't really do compilations like this but he came on board and added his lyrics, his flavor to the song, and U-God, he really came hard and his voice is so immaculate. The DJs are gonna have a lot of fun spinning that one."