The Government Released New Photos Of Wu-Tang Clan’s “Once Upon A Time In Shaolin” Album (But It Won’t Say How Much It Cost)
BuzzFeed News obtained the bill of sale and photographs of the album, which was auctioned by US marshals last July.
The redacted bill of sale for Once Upon a Time in Shaolin
The US government claims that the price it got for the legendary sole copy of Wu-Tang Clan’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is a “trade secret” that cannot be revealed, according to documents obtained by BuzzFeed News.
The album was originally purchased for about $2 million by pharmaceutical executive and hedge fund manager Martin Shkreli in 2015. When he was convicted of securities fraud in 2018 and ordered to forfeit $7.36 million, US marshals seized the album along with other assets.
Last July, the Justice Department announced it had found a buyer for the album but didn’t identify the individual or the price. The New York Times reported that attorney Peter Scoolidge, representing the digital art collective PleasrDAO, said the buyers paid the US government $4 million. The documents say that the new buyers assume the same terms of Shkreli’s purchase agreement. They may display the presentation box embedded with the Wu-Tang Clan logo, which was designed by British Moroccan artist Yahya Rouach, but they are prohibited from making copies of the album.
According to a copy of the five-page purchase agreement, the album was “sealed with “tamper-proof evidence tape” and delivered to the new owners “in that state.”
The new documents, which were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, include dozens of previously undisclosed photographs of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. The album, conceived by the rap group as a work of art, is held in a nickel silver box stored in a cedarwood box and covered in black cow leather with light beige velvet lining. It also includes a 175-page leather-bound lyric book and a gold-leafed certificate of authenticity. The government redacted images of the two CDs, the titles of the 20 songs and the lyric book citing “trade secrets.”
Wu-Tang Clan said the choice to produce only one copy of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin was a form of protest of the way music had been devalued in the digital era.
Neither Scoolidge nor representatives for Wu-Tang Clan responded to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News. On March 9 2018, after Shkreli was ordered to forfeit the album, Scoolidge sent a letter to the federal prosecutor on the case that “any transfer of ‘Once Upon a Time in Shaolin’ by Mr. Shkreli to any third party is restricted substantially by the terms of the September 3, 2015 Purchase Agreement through which Mr. Shrkeli obtained the work.”
At the time, Scoolidge represented Tarik “Cilvaringz” Azzougarh, a co-producer of the album who owned a 50 percent share of the master recordings. The letter said Azzourgarh was prepared to litigate to stop the forfeiture of Once Upon a Time in Shaolin because the transfer of the album to the US government violated the terms of the contract Shkreli entered into when he bought it. Azzourgarh’s name was redacted from the letter but a source familiar with it confirmed it was him.
“The United States and its agencies cannot take greater property rights from Mr. Shkreli than were granted by my client in the Purchase Agreement,” said the letter. Azzourgarh “is prepared to file a petition under the forfeiture order to protect his rights in the work. Please advise if you are open to potentially working out an agreement with my client and Mr. Shkreli that protects my client’s rights so that we can avoid the need to burden” the federal judge that ordered the forfeiture.
It appears Scoolidge and federal prosecutors were working on an agreement for more than a year. On Dec. 20, 2019, the associate general counsel in the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York sent Scoolidge a letter indicating the government was gearing up to sell Once Upon a Time in Shaolin and needed guidance on how to do that without violating the terms of Shkreli’s original purchase agreement.
RZA, the de facto leader of the rap group, told a New York radio station last year he regretted selling the album to Shkreli. But since the government’s sale to PleasrDAO, RZA said he believes the album is in better hands.
TRASHY: Remember this when they show you “proof” and blame porch pirates.
Katrina Wright is interested, but her price is max $1.99… still dreaming about the good old Dollar Store $0.99
Katrina at a young age decided to be a professional bodybuilder and fitness model. Her initial fame as a bodybuilder and fitness model came in when she was named as a WNBF Pro Natural Bikini model. With rising fame, as a model, she was signed by numerous sports and fashion brands.
At the same, Katrina garnered thousands of followers on social media platforms including Instagram by sharing her modeling photos and videos. Subsequently, she has been a face and promoter of different sports, fashion, and nutrition brands.
p>Besides this, Katrina runs a fitness blog titled “collegecleaneating”, where her lifestyle, healthcare blogs, and dieting charts are shared. She has also found The Sculpt You, a low-cost fitness program, and The Self Care Space, a life coaching & therapy. Presumably soon, she will be seen on the cover of different sports and lifestyle magazines.
Facts
- Katrina Wright hails from United States.
- She is a popular bodybuilder, fitness model, Instagram star, and social media influencer.
- Katrina is the founder of a fitness program called The Sculpt You.
- Brown and Red are her much liked colors.
- Traveling, singing, dancing, modeling, and surfing are her hobbies.
- Italy is her favorite holiday destination.
- Katrina is an animal lover and has a pet dog.
- She is fond of playing basketball and tennis.