I received an audio copy via Macmillian Audio. All reviews are my own.
Many behind-the-scenes stories have been popping up all over social platforms recently, and I've been loving them. You never truly know what's going on with creatives. What kind of mental state did they have? What was the process of making said piece? What were the backdoor deals or situations that created timeless moments in history?
Because I am an entertainment girly, my interests have always been in the media. Hearing that Keanu Reeves is the do-gooder nobody saw coming brings joy to your soul. Seeing the beef play out between Rick James and Prince's careers will always be legendary. Finding out that Pharrell is a real-life vampire and has been creating hits since fresh out of the womb will forever be exceptional. But one of my favorite stories that live rent-free in my mind is the Mariah Carey/Fantasy Remix session between A&R Cory Rooney and Ol' Dirty Bastard. To make a long story short, that was Rooney's worst experience as an A&R, but his efforts were worth it because it's still one of the biggest records in Hip-Hop history. So, when I saw an audiobook about personal stories with ODB, I was excited to hear some details about his inspirations. Where I thought I would get another Fantasy moment, I got a more in-depth understanding of the man behind the ODB persona. As told by three of the closest people in his life up until his death, these are the stories of Russell Tyrone Jones by his mother, Cherry Jones, his manager, Jarred Weisfeld, and his bodyguard, Jerome Baldwin.
"For the first time in this audio original, three of the people closest to him are sharing their memories of Russell Tyrone Jones—the man known to the world as Ol' Dirty Bastard.
Ol' Dirty Bastard was the heart and soul of the revolutionary East Coast rap group Wu-Tang Clan. He was an iconic figure with a new way of rapping his verse that changed the face of Hip-Hop. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, when big stars like Puff Daddy and Kanye West were just getting started, Ol' Dirty Bastard was one of the biggest stars in rap. Since his untimely death just before his thirty-sixth birthday in 2004, Ol' Dirty Bastard has continued to be an influence on rap artists.
Written and narrated by his mother Cherry Jones and his bodyguard Jerome Baldwin, with a foreword written and narrated by his manager Jarred Weisfeld, Everybody Loves Dirty presents the true story of Ol' Dirty Bastards short life. Funny, touching and heartbreaking, Everybody Loves Dirty is the audiobook everyone has been waiting to hear—the first true portrait of this legendary figure."
I had mixed feelings going into the audio. I won't say that I'm an ODB aficionado. His rise to fame happened when I was just three years old. But it felt strange that two of the three people they got to do this audio was his manager and bodyguard. Other than his mother, I would assume the people who grew up with him from the beginning would relay these stories, but alas. It's another behind-the-scenes mystery that will unravel at a later time. I hoped to hear more about his early life and inspirations, but the focus was on his last years and struggles.
Everybody Loves Dirty takes place between 2003-2004, with him coming straight out of jail. Jarred Weisfeld starts the story of how they met and how he became his manager. In part two, we saw a younger ODB grow up through his mother's stories. And by the last year of his life, we heard the final words from his protector, Jerome Baldwin. The memoir wasn't just about ODB's antics but the reason behind it all. Through the struggle with drugs, relationships within his circle, and overall fame, the stories that were told showed the demise of Ol' Dirty Bastard and his vices.
My only dislike with the book was that I was not too fond of the setup of how it was done. Jones, Weisfeld, and Baldwin are not professional narrators, but it sounded like they were all reading from paper. We may have gotten the facts about Dirt McGirt, but we didn't get the feeling behind it. They were retelling moments, but it felt more about clearing his motives rather than relaying the moment. His mother, Cherry, is probably the only one who came close to it because that's his mom. A mom knows her child.
Overall I rated this book 3-stars. I usually don't rate nonfiction because how can you dispute facts? Especially in this case, you can watch old YouTube clips documenting the rapper's last year of life. No lies were told. ODB's biography was nothing I expected, and I learned who he was behind the camera. It's unfortunate he couldn't shake off the drugs or the negative people in his life. I don't believe his revamp would have gotten him further in his career, but we still would have that shit-talking, straight from Brooklyn, clownery that a generation and above have grown up with. Gone too soon, rest in peace.
Everybody Loves Dirty: Personal Stories about Ol' Dirty Bastard From Those Closest To Him is available now!
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