00:00Please join me as it is my distinct honor to induct the Wu-Tang Clan into Billboard's Hip-Hop Hall of Fame.
00:20Mic check, one, two.
00:23Yeah, we didn't bring the whole crew here, but Raekwon, the chef, Capadonna here.
00:29On my right and left.
00:31I'm going to say something right now that's, you know, not just for this crowd, but for those who are recording and we could send it out, you know what I mean, and share it.
00:42When you think about Hall of Fame, you're thinking about it being full of people with fame, famous people.
00:49But there are so many other people who are not famous that helps build our culture, help build the career of the artists.
01:00Whether it's someone like a Steve Rifkin, Leo Cohen, or Wendy Goldstein, or a Dante Ross, A&R, or Billboard magazine.
01:13There's so many elements that go towards a career to make it famous.
01:19And there's so many elements that go towards the culture to make that culture famous.
01:26Hip-hop started in New York City.
01:30When we was doing it at first, not 500 people knew how to do it.
01:34All right?
01:36Now, it's spread across the world, become a global, multi-billion-dollar movement that's feeding families all over the world.
01:49All right?
01:50And I want y'all to...
01:52I'm saying that not just to y'all because y'all are getting paid here, but to those who may watch this, keep the culture alive.
02:01Strive to bring forth inspiration.
02:05Don't be shy to be yourself.
02:08Don't be shy to be different.
02:11I want to thank a few people real quick before I jump off the mic.
02:15I want to thank first my Wu-Tang brothers and executives who pioneered this.
02:20My brother, Mitchell Devon Diggs, his partner, Power, Oliver Grant, Mook, John Givens, Steve Rifkin, Rich Iserson, Mojo, Mike McDonald, Mike Cervantes, Tim Mandelbaum, and my current Power Team, a young man who's made the...
02:39He made your management power.
02:42Tyler Chowes, Jacob Green, and I want to thank the entire Billboard staff for thinking about us.
02:50Appreciating our contribution to the culture.
02:53I mean, it's a wonderful validation.
02:55We came out in 1993.
02:58And since then, and Raekwon could tell you, I used to look at the Billboard every week, right?
03:05We had dozens of songs and albums on that chart, and it made us feel special.
03:10So on behalf of myself, Chapa Donna, Raekwon, shout-out to my beautiful wife, Talani, and the rest of the Wu-Tang Clan.
03:19Thank you, Billboard.
03:19Real quick, real quick, y'all.
03:29This is the chef right here.
03:30I just want to say one thing.
03:32Billboard, we appreciate the accolades, the love through the years.
03:36Spent a long time, man.
03:38We've been in this game for almost 30-something years, and y'all always been there to support us.
03:43We love y'all.
03:44And to the new artists out there that's doing their thing, let me leave you a jewel real quick.
03:50Let's continue to grow, to prosper, and to be innovative.
03:56To be innovative.
03:58Because we make this culture what it is today.
04:01You know, when you sit down and you think about music, music is the pulse to life, right?
04:07So it's important for us to preserve it, protect it, and stand on it on a real level.
04:13And I just want to say, Billboard, like RZA, like you said, yo, y'all been there for us.
04:19And yo, likewise.
04:21Peace and love.
04:24Fuck it.
04:25I just want to say...
04:27Nah, I'm just saying, though.
04:31You know, I want to thank all the fans.
04:34I want to thank Billboard.
04:35I want to thank Steve Rifkin.
04:37Because without him, it wouldn't even be no Wu-Tang.
04:41He believed in us.
04:43He believed in the dream.
04:45And when everybody else was scared, he put us on.
04:49This the man right here.
04:51You know what I'm saying?
04:52So I want to say what Ray said to me before.
04:55It only takes a lesson a day just to analyze life one time in a respectable mind.
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