"When you get a deal, release a record, and aren't satisfied with the way your product is marketed and promoted, then it's time to take it back to the streets and take matters into your own hands, which is exactly what these two cousins from Staten Island did. Prince Rakeem, formerly on Tommy Boy Records, and his cousin The Genius, formerly on Cold Chillin' (or Cold Killin' as Genius calls it), united with a family of up and comers from around their way and put out their own 12-inch. The Wu-Tang clan is packed with flavor MCs, all bringing a unique style to the cutting edge of underground hip-hop. You might get lost trying to identify every rapper in the song (Shallah Raekwon, Method Man, U-God, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Ghost Face Killer, Inspectah Deck, The RZA, The Genius), but one thing's for sure, there's plenty of dope styles to get into. After everybody represents, Genius takes us outta here with an all out lyrical assault on record company execs who are "so stingy, they got short arms and deep pockets," and who know nothing about rap music: "First of all, who's your A&R / A mountain climber who plays the electric guitar?" - The Source.
The review of "Protect Ya Neck" in The Source (2/93) is below...
