Studio Album · No. 7

Once Upon a Time in Shaolin Songwriting Credits by Wu-Tang Clan

2015 EZCLZIV Scluzay 0 tracks 110 min
EZCLZIV Scluzay Hardcore Hip HopEast Coast Hip Hop
Credits not
documented

Songwriter credits for this album are not yet documented.

Authorship Breakdown

Songwriter credits for this album are not yet documented in our sources. We leave the authorship score blank rather than imply Wu-Tang Clan wrote none of it.

By the Numbers

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2015
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Data Insight

Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is a single-copy art project conceived by Wu-Tang affiliate Cilvaringz under RZA's executive direction, recorded in secret between roughly 2007 and 2013 and pressed as exactly one physical copy housed in an engraved silver-and-nickel box. The concept treats the album as a unique fine-art object rather than commercial music, a protest against streaming-era devaluation; only the single copy exists. Because the recordings were never publicly released, the album's per-track credits and contents cannot be independently verified from public audio. The lone copy sold at auction in 2015 for about 2 million dollars to Martin Shkreli, was later seized by US authorities, and eventually passed to the collective PleasrDAO.

The seventh Wu-Tang Clan album, recorded in secret between 2007 and 2013 and pressed as a single two-CD copy that has never been sold as music, streamed or made downloadable. Cilvaringz and RZA built it as an art object instead of a record, deleted the master files once the one copy existed, and wrote a sale agreement barring commercial exploitation until 2103. The full Clan appears on it along with Redman, two turns from Cher, the actress Carice van Houten and players from FC Barcelona; Method Man later said the members were not told they were recording a Wu-Tang album. Martin Shkreli bought the copy at auction in 2015, US authorities seized it after his securities fraud conviction, and PleasrDAO paid 4 million dollars for it in 2021. It went on public display for the first time in June 2024 at the Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart.

Track Listing & Credits 0 tracks

Written by the artist Written by outside writers
#TitleLyricist(s)Composer(s)Producer(s)Performers

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Frequently Asked Questions Once Upon a Time in Shaolin

What makes Once Upon a Time in Shaolin unique?
Once Upon a Time in Shaolin was produced as a single physical copy, the only one ever made, presented as a fine-art object in an ornate engraved box with leather-bound liner notes. Wu-Tang Clan and producer Cilvaringz intended it to challenge the way streaming has devalued recorded music.
Who bought Once Upon a Time in Shaolin and for how much?
Martin Shkreli, then CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, bought the album at a 2015 auction through Paddle8 for about 2 million dollars. The purchase agreement barred commercial exploitation of the music for 88 years.
Has the music from Once Upon a Time in Shaolin ever been released?
No. The recordings have never been commercially released and the audio is not public, with only brief snippets played at private events and exhibitions. Because no public audio exists, the album's full tracklist and per-track credits cannot be independently verified.
Who produced Once Upon a Time in Shaolin?
The album was produced largely by Wu-Tang affiliate Cilvaringz under the executive direction of RZA. It was recorded in secret over several years, reportedly with sessions in Staten Island and production work in Marrakech, Morocco.
What happened to the album after Martin Shkreli owned it?
After Shkreli's 2017 securities-fraud conviction, US federal authorities seized the album in 2018. The Department of Justice sold it in 2021, and it ultimately passed to the digital-art collective PleasrDAO.
Why can't per-track credits for Once Upon a Time in Shaolin be verified?
Because only one copy exists and the audio was never publicly released, there is no public recording against which to confirm who performed or produced each track. Only the broad, publicly documented facts about the project and its sale can be verified.
Data note: Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is a single-copy art project whose audio was never publicly released; only one physical copy exists. With no public recording or tracklist audio, per-track lyricist/composer credits cannot be independently verified, so the album remains unverified. The publicly documented album-level facts (the single-copy concept, Cilvaringz/RZA production, and the 2015 auction sale) are enriched and sourced.

Sources

Wikipedia: Once Upon a Time in Shaolin MusicBrainz release group Cover Art Archive front cover Cover Art Archive: Once Upon a Time in Shaolin by Wu-Tang Clan