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Russell Tyrone Jones (November 15, 1968 – November 13, 2004), known professionally as Ol' Dirty Bastard (often abbreviated as ODB), was an American rapper who was one of the founding members of the New York rap group Wu-Tang Clan, formed in 1992. Jones also released music as a solo artist beginning with Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version (1995). He was noted for his "outrageously profane, free-associative rhymes delivered in a distinctive half-rapped, half-sung style".

His professional success was hampered by frequent legal troubles, including incarceration. He died on November 13, 2004, of an accidental drug overdose, at age 35. He is the father of rapper Young Dirty Bastard.

Biography

Early life, formation of the Wu-Tang Clan

Russell Tyrone Jones was born on November 15, 1968, in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn, New York City. On the 1997 released Wu-Tang track "Reunited", Jones claimed his ancestors sold Manhattan to Europeans. Later in an interview on The Howard Stern Show on February 26, 1998, Jones detailed his Shinnecock indigenous heritage publicly. He and his cousins Robert Diggs and Gary Grice shared a taste for rap music and martial arts-style movies. Jones, Diggs, and Grice (later known as Ol' Dirty Bastard, RZA, and GZA respectively) formed the group Force of the Imperial Master, which became known as All in Together Now after their successful underground single of the same name. They eventually added six more members to their group, calling it the Wu-Tang Clan. The group released their debut album Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) in 1993, receiving notable commercial and critical success.

His stage name was derived from the 1980 Chinese martial arts film Ol' Dirty and the Bastard (also called An Old Kung Fu Master, starring Yuen Siu-tien). According to fellow Wu-Tang Clan member Method Man, Ol' Dirty Bastard's name was also a reference to the unique nature of his rapping and, specifically, the fact "there ain't no father to his style."

Music career

Ol' Dirty Bastard's solo career began in 1995. His first solo album, Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version, spawned the hit singles "Brooklyn Zoo" and "Shimmy Shimmy Ya", which helped propel the album to platinum status. The album's sound was noted by several music writers as being as "raw and gritty" as 36 Chambers, with RZA and 4th Disciple producing beats of an even more minimalist and stripped-down style than on the group's debut album. In this same year, Ol' Dirty Bastard collaborated with Mariah Carey for the remix version of her single "Fantasy".

It was around this time that Ol' Dirty Bastard gained notoriety when, as he was being profiled for an MTV biography, he took two of his three children by limousine to a New York State welfare office to cash a $375 welfare check (equivalent to $792 in 2025) and receive food stamps while his latest album was still in the top 10 of the U.S. charts. The entire incident was filmed by an MTV camera crew and was broadcast nationwide. Although he had recently received a $45,000 cash advance for his first solo album (equivalent to roughly $95,000 in 2025) and was earning a cut of the profits from the Wu-Tang Clan's debut album, Ol' Dirty Bastard was still listed as eligible for welfare and food stamps due to the fact that he had not yet filed his taxes for the current year. His caseworker revoked his eligibility after seeing the MTV segment, and the incident was presented by critics of welfare as representative of the allegedly widespread abuse and fraud that led to the significant welfare reforms enacted in 1996.

In 1997, Ol' Dirty Bastard appeared on the Wu-Tang Clan's second and most commercially successful work, the double album Wu-Tang Forever. He had fewer appearances on this album than the group's debut, contributing to one solo track ("Dog Shit"), three verses ("Maria", "Reunited", "Heaterz"), one hook ("As High as Wu-Tang Get"), and a spoken introduction/refrain ("Triumph").

In February 1998, Ol' Dirty Bastard witnessed a car accident from the window of his Brooklyn recording studio. He and a friend ran to the accident scene and organized about a dozen onlookers, who assisted in lifting the 1996 Ford Mustang—rescuing a 4-year-old girl from the wreckage. She was taken to a hospital with first and second-degree burns. Using a false name, Ol' Dirty Bastard visited the girl in the hospital frequently until he was spotted by members of the media.