Posted by Raekwon’s debut album Only Built 4 Cuban Linx celebrated its 25th anniversary on August 1, but he’s not done highlighting its legacy. In an interview with HipHopDX, The Chef provided an update on his Purple Tape Files documentary and imagined the possibilities of his classic LP being adapted as a film.
“I’m working on a powerful documentary about The Purple Tape album and it’s called The Purple Tape Files,” he told DX. “So, people will definitely be inspired by this documentary. And one day, you never know, it may turn into a Godfather movie from the history that we’re basically gonna lay out on how this album was made. So, we’ll see.”
He continued, “I mean when you sit here and you look at a movie like Once Upon A Time In America, The Godfather, Scarface, you will always remember those. Those was Rae’s favorite movies and favorite actors that played in those movies that inspired Rae to do it in a Hip Hop form. So movies, maybe down the line. But right now, get ready for an explosive documentary that we’ve been working on for the last five years called The Purple Tape Files.”
The Wu-Tang Clan MC originally announced The Purple Tape Files in 2015. With the documentary almost complete, he’s excited about finally sharing it with fans and intrigued by future forays into film when it comes to OB4CL.
“Everything is starting to come to fruition,” he explained. “I’m feeling good about it. [I] want to sit down and have a glass of Leucadia wine and think about and talk about how this album was structured.”
He added, “I might be able to get a Leonardo DiCaprio or James Woods or Robert De Niro to come in and be like, ‘Yo, we need to make a movie about your fucking album because it’s so real. It’s so to the point and it stands the test of time.’ Some of our greatest MCs in the game that made millions and millions of dollars was inspired by this album. So, I not only made money, [but] it also allowed other people to use their minds to make money the same way because we all come from the bottom.”
Raekwon Aligns ‘Only Built 4 Cuban Linx’ With Film Royalty: ‘It’s The Godfather Vibe Of Hip Hop’
Although Rae hasn’t mapped out a release date for The Purple Tape Files yet, viewers can expect it to see it before the end of 2020. He also believes the documentary will be as captivating as ESPN’s hit docuseries The Last Dance, which covered Michael Jordan’s final season with the Chicago Bulls.
“Right now we definitely in the final stages of it,” he said of the documentary. “So definitely get ready for it before the beginning of next year. We gonna be ready to surprise the world. So, it’s a couple of things that’s going on, but I’ll keep some of it under my hat until the time is permitted.”
He declared, “You guys are gonna go crazy when you see The Purple Tape Files documentary. It’s something to look forward to. I mean, we saw the Jordan shit. We saw Jordan’s documentary, so I think right now I’m next up when it comes to what the world is about the see. You’re gonna be pretty much be blown away [by it].”
While fans have to wait on The Purple Tape Files and the recently announced Only Built 4 Cuban Linx 3 LP, the rare instrumental version of OB4CL is available now for pre-order.
Check out more of DX’s interview with Rae for the 25th anniversary of OB4CL here and stream the influential album below.