Show Notes
ODB scandalizes the nation by riding in a limo to collect a welfare check with an MTV camera crew in tow. His stunts make him a hero to the marginalized and opens doors to pop superstardom as Mariah Carey comes knocking. But as Dirty’s fame increases, the police begin targeting ODB and his brothers in the Wu-Tang Clan.
ODB: A Son Unique is produced by Novel and Talkhouse for USG Audio
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ODB died of an accidental drug overdose two days before his 36th birthday. Over the course of his short life, Dirty took on many names – Russell Jones, Ason Unique, Old Dirty Bastard, Osirius – each of them capturing a different facet of his personality. Khalik explores how Ol’ Dirty is remembered by the people who loved him, and why his art has endured so powerfully in the culture.
For ODB, what began as a stint in rehab becomes a three and a half year ordeal stuck in the criminal justice system. A lifetime of unchecked mental health issues, police harassment, media exploitation and substance abuse compounds into a full-blown crisis. So when he is finally released from prison, and an exciting record deal with Rocafella Records awaits, can Dirty move past the deep scars incarceration has left and return to form as the inimitable rapper he once was?
Against a backdrop of continued police harassment, random attacks and memorials to gunned down rappers, ODB’s paranoia goes into overdrive. To save himself, Ol’ Dirty tries to rebrand by returning to the principles of the black freedom struggle and by changing his name to Osirus. But it’s too late. ODB seems to be a marked man.
With his record label trying to tame his wild antics, ODB has a fight on his hands to stay true to himself. Against the odds, Dirty’s struggle for artistic freedom leads him to produce one of the most iconic album covers in rap history.