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Published on April 19th, 2022 | by Dr. Jerry Doby

A Win for Hip Hop: Wu-Tang Clan and Nas Announce Co Headlining ‘NY State of Mind Tour’

Yes indeed!!! What a win for Hip Hop, having these greats roaming across the country reminding folks of the music that made this culture great and a GLOBAL musical power!!! Not sure I ever dreamed it would come to fruition when the rumors started coming in but it’s official according to the announcement from Live Nation below:

Hip Hop icons Wu-Tang Clan and Nas have announced their upcoming legendary co-headlined NY State of Mind Tour. Produced by Live Nation, the 25-city tour kicks off on Tuesday, August 30th at Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in St. Louis, MO making stops across North America in Atlanta, Toronto, Austin, and more before wrapping up in Los Angeles, CA at Hollywood Bowl.

Nas
Wu-Tang

TICKETS: Tickets go on sale starting Tuesday, April 26th at 10 am local at livenation.com

PRESALE: American Express® Card Members can purchase tickets in Clarkston MI, Toronto, ON, Newark NJ, Houston TX, Austin TX, Oakland, CA, and Los Angeles, CA before the general public beginning Tuesday, April 19th at 10 am local time through Monday, April 25th at 10 pm local time.

Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets in select markets beginning Tuesday, April 19th at 10 am local time until Monday, April 25th at 10 pm local time through the Citi Entertainment program. For complete presale details visit www.citientertainment.com.

NY STATE OF MIND TOUR DATES:

Tue Aug 30 – St. Louis, MO – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre*

Thu Sep 01 – Noblesville, IN – Ruoff Music Center*

Fri Sep 02 – Tinley Park, IL – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre*

Sat Sep 03 – Clarkston, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre^

Sun Sep 04 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage^

Wed Sep 07 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center*

Thu Sep 08 – Camden, NJ – Waterfront Music Pavilion*

Fri Sep 09 – Hartford, CT – XFINITY Theatre*

Sat Sep 10 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center*

Tue Sep 13 – Newark, NJ – Prudential Center^

Wed Sep 14 – Virginia Beach, VA – Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach*

Fri Sep 16 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live*

Sat Sep 17 – Raleigh, NC – Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek*

Sun Sep 18 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion*

Tue Sep 20 – West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre*

Wed Sep 21 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre*

Thu Sep 22 – Atlanta, GA – Lakewood Amphitheatre*

Sat Sep 24 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center^

Sun Sep 25 – Austin, TX – Germania Insurance Amphitheater^

Mon Sep 26 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion*

Thu Sep 29 – Phoenix, AZ – Ak-Chin Pavilion*

Fri Sep 30 – Irvine, CA – FivePoint Amphitheatre*

Sat Oct 01 – Oakland, CA – Oakland Arena^

Sun Oct 02 – Wheatland, CA – Toyota Amphitheatre*

Tue Oct 04 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl^

*Citi Presale Available

^American Express® Early Access Available

About Wu-Tang Clan

Founded in New York City’s Staten Island in the early 1990s, the Wu-Tang Clan is comprised of members RZA, GZA, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, U-God, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck, Cappadonna, and the deceased Ol’ Dirty Bastard (ODB). Their name is a reference to a 1983 martial arts film.

Led by the production of RZA, samples from martial arts films have thematically appeared throughout the group’s music, as have samples of classic funk and soul tracks from artists like Rick James, James Brown, and Syl Johnson. As a group, Wu-Tang Clan have three platinum albums among their eight LPs, and the group’s complete anthology (including solo albums) has more than 85 full-length releases. More than just rappers, Wu-Tang Clan are entrepreneurs and successful cultural influencers, with an empire that features everything from clothing lines and video games to books and acting credits.

Wu-Tang Clan on Tour
Considered by many to be the greatest hip-hop group of all time, Wu-Tang Clan have been touring as a unit since their debut record — Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) — came out in 1993. The now triple-platinum release vaulted the New York City group with songs like “C.R.E.A.M.” (Cash Rules Everything Around Me) and “Protect Ya Neck” that are about as recognizable as anything in the rap canon.

Their live sets are a family affair, with every member of the crew representing their lyrical contributions to the Wu’s eight studio albums, as well as notable cuts from the Wu-Tang solo discography. With the omnipresent Wu-Tang “W” flanking all angles of the stage, there’s a familiarity to Wu-Tang Clan’s music that gives their shows unique mass appeal.

Whether they’re delivering the 36 Chambers record front to back on the album’s 25th Anniversary Tour, or tracks from GZA’s seminal Liquid Swords and Raekwon’s mafioso-minded Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…, or honoring the legacy of their departed brother, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, every Wu-Tang Clan show is a celebration of prolific careers as individuals and especially as the most storied group in hip-hop history.

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About Nas
Nas (Nasir Jones) first reached an international audience when his track “Halftime” was tapped by producer MC Serch as the opening cut on 1992’s Zebrahead movie soundtrack. Signed to Columbia Records, the first full-length album by poet and rhyme-master Nas arrived in 1994, Illmatic. The RIAA platinum hip-hop landmark featured “It Ain’t Hard To Tell,” “The World Is Yours,” and “One.” 1996 brought the breakthrough double-platinum It Was Written (#1 R&B for 7 weeks, #1 pop for 4 weeks), with his first major crossover singles “Street Dreams” and “If I Ruled the World (Imagine That).” Success continued with the double-platinum I Am in 1999 (again #1 pop and #1 R&B), with the chart singles “Nas Is Like,” “Hate Me Now” (featuring Puff Daddy), and “You Won’t See Me Tonight” (featuring Aaliyah).

Subsequent albums by Nas included: the RIAA platinum Nastradamus (1999, #2 R&B, #7 pop, with “Nastradamus” and “You Owe Me,” featuring Ginuwine); the platinum Stillmatic (2001, #1 R&B, #5 pop, with “Got Ur Self A…,” “ “One Mic,” and “Rule”); the platinum God’s Son (2002, #1 R&B, with huge R&B/pop crossover hits “Made You Look” and “I Can”); and the platinum double-CD Street’s Disciple (2004, #2 R&B, #5 pop, with “Bridging the Gap” and “Just a Moment”). And his 2012 album, Life Is Good earned him 4 Grammy nominations including Rap Album of the Year and is certified RIAA gold.

Over the years, Nas has also been the featured guest on a number of crossover hits by other artists, among them: Allure (“Head Over Heels,” 1997); Missy Elliott (the #1 “Hot Boyz,” 1999); fellow Queensbridge rapper Mobb Deep (“It’s Mine,” 1999); Jagged Edge (“I Got It 2,” 2002); J-Lo (“I’m Gonna Be Alright,” 2002); Kanye West (“Classic (Better Than I’ve Ever Been),” 2006); DJ Khaled (“Nas Album Done,” 2016); Swizz Beats (“Echo,” 2018); Jhene Aiko (“10K Hours,” 2020) and others.

In August 2020, Nas released King’s Disease. King’s Disease marked Nas’ first new album in 2 years. The album was entirely produced by Hit-Boy, and Gabriel “G Code” Zardes serves as the albums co-executive producer. The album won “Best Rap Album” at the 2021 GRAMMYs, marking Nas’ first ever GRAMMY win.

In August of 2021, Nas released King’s Disease II, a sequel to the GRAMMY Award winning album. King’s Disease II was executive produced by Nas and Hit-Boy and features collaborations with Eminem, EPMD, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, YG, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Hit-Boy & more. The album earned a nomination for “Best Rap Album” at the upcoming 64th GRAMMY Awards. Most recently, Nas released a surprise album titled Magic featuring A$AP Rocky and DJ Premier.

In addition to his successful career in music, Nas has pursued a career in motion pictures that began with his co-starring role (alongside DMX) in 1998’s cult classic crime drama Belly, a film by director Hype Williams (with whom Nas has done several music videos). Most recently, he was the executive producer of the 2016 Netflix series The Get Down.

Nas is also the co-founder of Mass Appeal Records.

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Tags: Live Nation, Nas, Tour, Wu-Tang Clan

About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.